Read the Old Gold & Black’s initial reporting here.

Kenan Chair of the Humanities Laura Mullen says she has resigned from her position as Kenan Chair in the Humanities at Wake Forest for personal reasons.

Mullen also announced her resignation to her poetry workshop class on Tuesday afternoon, saying that she would continue teaching her Fall 2023 classes but would not be returning in the spring, according to two students in the poetry workshop class. The Old Gold & Black has granted those students’ request for anonymity due to the threats Mullen has faced and the danger those threats could present to Mullen’s classes and the students in them. Mullen is also teaching a graduate-level Studies in Modern Poetry course this semester.

According to an English Department course plan obtained by the Old Gold & Black in September, Mullen was slated to teach Introduction to Creative Writing (CRW 100) and a topics course in creative writing (CRW 300). Professor Eric Ekstrand is now scheduled to teach CRW 100 in Spring 2024, according to Wake Forest’s course registration site, Banner. There is currently not a section of CRW 300 listed on the registration page for Spring 2024.

Dean of the College Dr. Jackie Krasas and Chair of the English Department Dr. Jefferson Holdridge did not respond to the Old Gold & Black’s requests for an interview at the time of publication. The co-directors of the Creative Writing Program, Dr. Joanna Ruocco and Prof. Amy Catanzano, also did not respond to the Old Gold & Black’s request for an interview. Wake Forest’s Human Resources department also did not respond to the Old Gold & Black’s request for information. Dr. Dean Franco, director of Wake Forest’s Humanities Institute, declined to comment. 

One student in Mullen’s class told the Old Gold & Black they were saddened by Mullen’s resignation.

“She has a singular talent for highlighting the qualities that make a student’s work unique and for offering advice which strengthens that quality,” the student said. “She has taken on such a special role for me as a mentor in creative writing. I have never experienced a professor so willing to devote time and creative thought to her students’ work and am incredibly grateful to have been able to experience that.”

Post sparks backlash, threats

Mullen, who taught courses in the Creative Writing program since Spring 2022, did not elaborate on her reasons for leaving, but over the past two weeks, she has received intense criticism and threats to her personal safety following a post she published to her personal X account on Oct. 12. 

The post, which was deleted on Oct. 19, read: “So it’s kind of a Duh but if you turn me out of my house plow my olive grove and confine what’s left of my family to the small impoverished state you run as an open air prison I could be tempted to shoot up your dance party yeah even knowing you will scorch the earth.”

Reactions to Mullen’s post varied. Many, including Wake Forest students and alumni, criticized Mullen’s post as justifying attacks perpetrated by Hamas — a Palestinian militant group — against Israel on Oct. 7. Multiple people on social media and in the Wake Forest community called for Mullen to be fired. Mullen told the Old Gold & Black on Oct. 20 that “the post did not condone violence” but was an attempt to imagine and understand how the violence came about. (Editor’s Note: The Old Gold & Black follows AP Style guidance, which is to refer to Hamas as a militant group).

As the Old Gold & Black reported last week, Rubin Presidential Chair of Jewish History Dr. Barry Trachtenberg said that while he believed Mullen’s tone was too flippant, he read the post as explaining, not justifying Hamas’ attacks. The student in Mullen’s class echoed Trachtenberg’s sentiments, saying that the post was likely misconstrued due to Mullen’s “facetious word choice and flippant tone.” 

On Oct. 17, Wake Forest President Susan Wente and Provost Michele Gillespie released a statement on behalf of the university, saying that while Mullen had a right to free speech, they “do not condone or support” the views expressed in Mullen’s post. Mullen said that in addition to criticism, she had received numerous threats to her personal safety. Mullen said the threats intensified after the university released its statement. 

Mullen also said she received letters from parents and a Jewish student offering support — the Old Gold & Black reviewed the letter from the student, which was unsigned and has since confirmed its authorship.

This is a breaking story, and the Old Gold & Black will continue updating this piece as more information becomes available. This story is also part of the Old Gold & Black’s ongoing coverage of the Israel-Hamas War and its impact on campus. All articles — in news and opinion — on the Israel-Hamas War are available here.

Update Nov. 1, 2023 at 11:01 a.m.: This story was updated to reflect that the Old Gold & Black has confirmed the identity of the unsigned letter to Mullen.