Jazz prof is on sick leave after student boycott

We hear that London jazz professor Martin Speake went on sick leave today after students boycotted his classes at TrinityLaban, Guildhall and the Royal Academy of Music. They are demanding his dismissal.

The protest was triggered by a private email that Speake had written to the principal and head of music at TrinityLaban, questioning aspects of its inclusivity agenda. We have seen the email and some of its contents may be interpreted as counter-cultural. Speake’s email, which was not intended for public perusal, ends with a quote from Martin Luther King who ‘famously called on us to judge people according to the content of their character not the colour of their skin.’

Some students claimed that the content of the email affected their mental health.

The college management held a meeting today with student representatives.

It’s tense out there.