To the editor:

In Timothy Snyder’s book “On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century,” the very first lesson is “Do not obey in advance.” That describes when individuals and institutions think ahead about what a repressive government will want, and then offers themselves without being asked.

According to Chad Lawhorn’s May 1 front-page article, apparently KU Endowment has decided to comply in advance with Donald Trump’s DEI rules. The article states, “If KU doesn’t make changes to such scholarships, Endowment leaders are worried that the university will face sanctions from the federal government…”

Snyder notes in his book that our political order today faces new threats, not unlike the totalitarianism of the 20th century. May we not lose sight of this threat.

Mike Lawrence,

Lawrence