English Professor Sues South Florida College Over Firing

A veteran English professor has filed a federal lawsuit against South Florida State College, alleging she was fired for assigning a widely taught short story, a move her legal team claims violates her First Amendment rights. Vinita Prabhakar, who has taught for nearly two decades, was dismissed in February after college president Fred Hawkins objected to her use of Ottessa Moshfegh’s award-winning 2013 story "Bettering Myself" in a freshman English course.

According to the lawsuit filed on July 29 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, the controversy began when a student expressed discomfort with the story's themes, which include alcohol abuse and sexual references. Prabhakar addressed the concern in class, and the student reportedly felt better after the discussion. The situation escalated, however, after another staff member filed a complaint. President Hawkins summoned Prabhakar to a meeting on February 11.

During that meeting, Hawkins expressed personal disapproval of the text, stating he would not want his own daughter to read it and calling the story "political." He ordered that it never be assigned again. Prabhakar defended the assignment as a...