Against “Ideologies”: “Freedom” of Science at Stake in Culture Wars

The subject of this article is the analysis of selected institutional activities, including drafts of legislative initiatives and social actions that took place between 2018 and 2020 at Polish universities (and outside of them). Its goal is to define what can be expressed, who is entitled to speak within the academic realm and what can be said by an academic teacher or scientist during a public debate. These social actions and legislative initiatives are discussed in the broader context of activities of social movements having a clear ideological face (either left- or right-wing), protests against lectures, debates organised at universities that were labelled as “ideological”, as well as projects intended to promote specific visions of academic freedom along with corresponding regulations for universities.