President Obama sends hand-written apology to professor after mocking history of art degrees
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.President Obama has apologised for insulting art history students and teachers after he made a "glib" remark discouraging students from taking art history.
Obama made the remarks during an event at a General Electrics plant in Wisconsin late last month, while trying to persuade young people to pursue more practical skills.
The offending comment suggested that “folks can make a lot more potentially with skilled manufacturing or the trades than they might with an art history degree”.
He followed up by stressing that he found “nothing wrong with an art history degree. I love art history. I don’t want to get a bunch of emails from everybody.”
However, Professor Ann Collins Johns, who teaches Art History at the University of Texas, Austin, was left unimpressed by his remarks and unconvinced by his backtracking.
She sent a letter criticizing the president’s words to the White House website - so he surprised her by sending her a hand-written response.
In the apology letter, Obama apologized for his "off-the-cuff" remarks and explained that he was "making a point about the jobs market, not the value of art history" and that in fact the subject was one of his favourites in high school.
He reiterated that he “was trying to encourage young people who might not be predisposed to a four-year college experience to be open to technical training that can lead them to an honorable career”.
When contacted via her Facebook page, Johns admitted she had been surprised by the personal response.
She said that wanted to make it clear that she loved Obama and that she felt "totally guilty about wasting his time’.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments