Who Is Nathan Cofnas? The 'Race Realist' Behind the Jason Arday Plagiarism Storm That Spawned 249 Articles

The plagiarism allegations against Jason Arday, the youngest Black professor at the University of Cambridge, triggered a media frenzy that produced close to 250 articles in just 22 days. The scale of coverage drew criticism from watchdog group NewsCord, which tweeted its observation about the media coverage before Arday was found dead on Friday, 14 August.

'UK media mentioned Peter Mandelson 119 times in the weeks after the Epstein files were released. In 2023, a white Cambridge professor named William O'Reilly was found guilty of plagiarism, and only the Financial Times covered it. But the media hounded Jason Arday, publishing 249 articles in 22 days,' NewsCord shared on X.

Arday's sudden death intensified scrutiny on the controversy and the role of Nathan Cofnas, whose Substack article first accused Arday of plagiarism and questioned his background and achievements.

Who Is Nathan Cofnas?

Cofnas describes himself as a 'race realist,' who believes that intelligence varies by ethnic background. He claims that without DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) initiatives, certain minorities would not have certain high-value positions. It is because of this theory that Cofnas became very critical of Arday, who became one of the youngest Black professors in England during his appointment as sociology professor at Cambridge in 2022.

'What would happen if we actually had a colourblind meritocracy? Representation of certain groups, such as African Americans would be decimated. It would fall. Well, not just a reduction of 10%, but it would fall to 10% of what it is,' Cofnas said of his 'race reality,' often dubbed scientific racism.

His view on race provoked intense opposition at Cambridge, where he held a fellowship post. In 2024, he wrote a blog advocating for scientific racism, saying: 'Harvard faculty would be recruited from the best of the best students, which means the number of Black professors would approach zero per cent.' Dozens of university students petitioned for Cofnas's firing, but university investigators ruled that his blog fell under freedom of speech protections. The backlash ultimately led to his resignation.

Ghent Faculty and Students Want Cofnas Out

The American philosopher Cofnas is now a postdoctoral researcher at Ghent University in Belgium, but his appointment has been contested. Some students and faculty argued that his views are 'in violation of Ghent University's code of ethics.'

Philosophy-based website 'Daily Nous' reported that an open letter to rescind Cofnas' hiring was released. It read: 'The idea that we must face the supposed reality that white people are simply superior to Black people... But that is not reality. It is racism.'

Ghent rector Petra de Sutter reportedly replied that while she is not ignoring the open letter and Cofnas' controversial statements, Cofnas was appointed as researcher because of his 'record and expertise' as reviewed by the Human Resources department. Cofnas also had the backing of scholars from different universities, who said in a letter: 'We oppose this attack on academic freedom.'

Reaction to Arday's Death

While Cofnas has not made a statement regarding Arday's death, he restacked a post on Substack claiming that he has received death threats.

Meanwhile, hundreds of colleagues and students gathered at Cambridge to honour the life of Arday. 'Today is about celebrating the life of a brilliant man, Professor Jason Arday. Today we share the ways Jason made a difference in our lives and in the lives of those around us,' said Shahnaaz Khan, a PhD student at the Faculty of Education.