What happened to Dr. Christopher DiCarlo after teaching ‘We Are All African’ in a Canadian university course on critical thinking?
On November 1, 2005, Dr. Christopher DiCarlo taught a sessional course at Southern Ontario university on critical thinking, an area of expertise for him. A sessional (freelance) faculty member is part of the academic precariat.
He freelanced for six to seven years between three universities in Ontario. He won a teaching award at the University of Guelph. On the board, he wrote a distinct scientific fact, succinct and scientifically grounded: “We are all African.” The singular form shows all humans share a single ancestral origin. Using the Genographic Project DNA kit on his son Matt, they traced their lineage through Italy to ancestral roots in Africa.
He wrote this to illustrate human beings’ shared genetic legacy and broader ancestry. The purpose was pedagogical to spark critical discussion among 93 students. The pedagogical decision was grounded in research. Research DiCarlo had done at Harvard and Spencer Wells’ Genographic Project.
There was immediate pushback from a student. They asked, “Yeah, but how do you know that?” It is a good moment to educate people on human ancestry from scientific facts. An Indigenous student questioned, “But my people would not accept that… Who is right–their creation stories or the scientific evidence?”
He pitched a cross-cultural dialogue, inviting Indigenous elders and scientific colleagues to engage in respectful debate—a proposal that received applause and was warmly welcomed by the class. Although Indigenous elders were invited, none ultimately joined the class, and no further dialogue took place.
On November 11, 2005, Dr. DiCarlo got a letter. A letter stating two Christian fundamentalist students and one Indigenous student collaborated–all women. The three alleged that by using the phrase, DiCarlo was promoting racism and Eurocentrism. The letter was from the Associate Dean of Southern Ontario University.
In mid-November 2005, the university retracted the tenure-track critical thinking position. It was a new position. DiCarlo was shortlisted for the position, which ended his candidacy. No public explanation for the position retraction was provided. Pre-retraction, he met with the university Vice President to review the job description of the new tenure-track job.
In late 2005, Dr. DiCarlo filed a grievance to the faculty union. The grievance produced internal emails showing the university’s violation of the collective agreement. They failed to shortlist and interview him, as required. The absence of this protocol breached the collective agreement.
In early December 2005, the university negotiated a confidential settlement with Dr. DiCarlo–no arbitration. A nominal financial settlement was given under a non-disclosure agreement, which barred public defence or admission of wrongdoing. On January 16, 2007, he gave a lecture entitled “We Are All African: Our Greatest Discovery,” at York University’s Calumet College.
In September 2008, he received the UOIT Complementary Faculty Teaching Award and TVO’s Big Ideas Best Lecturer in Ontario Award. Dr. DiCarlo considers this episode an early instance of cancel culture in academia. After the incident, he created the “We Are All African” T-shirt and wore it to a conference. Reactions differed. An African-American attendee supported it.
He wrote an article in Free Inquiry entitled “We Are All African! Can scientific proof of our commonality save us?” The purpose was to show a case against privileging any origin mythology over another. He went on a cross-Canadian speaker circuit with the “We Are All African” message.
He was a Visiting Research Scholar at Harvard’s Department of Anthropology and Peabody Museum. He did research. Two notable papers were produced: The Comparative Brain: The Evolution of Human Reasoning and The Evolution of Religion: Why Many Need to Believe in Deities, Demons, and the Unseen.
Now, Dr. DiCarlo is the Principal and Founder of Critical Thinking Solutions, Ethics Chair for the Canadian Mental Health Association, and Expert Advisor for the Centre for Inquiry Canada. He is also focused on AI, a Senior Researcher and Ethicist at Convergence Analysis, and a lifetime member of Humanist Canada.
He observed a trend. Other university philosophy departments ceased offering critical thinking courses. He considers himself one of the first “canceled casualties” in Canadian academia. Dr. DiCarlo’s case showcases academic inquiry and pedagogy can become vulnerable to ideological conflict. A conflict bound to institutional structures, even if the position is grounded in evidence and inclusivity.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen is Secretary of, and Chair of the Media Committee for, The New Enlightenment Project. He is the publisher of In-Sight Publishing (ISBN: 978-1-0692343) and Editor-in-Chief of In-Sight: Interviews (ISSN: 2369-6885). He writes for The Good Men Project, International Policy Digest (ISSN: 2332–9416), The Humanist (Print: ISSN 0018-7399; Online: ISSN 2163-3576), Basic Income Earth Network (UK Registered Charity 1177066), A Further Inquiry, and other media. He is a member in good standing of numerous media organizations.
Photo by Brittani Burns on Unsplash