Oxford Reform Society to host self-described “race realist” Nathan Cofnas at Oriel College

The Oxford Reform Society, which registered with the University of Oxford in August, is due to host the controversial academic and self-described “race realist” Nathan Cofnas on Tuesday 17 November at Oriel College.

The society, officially named the Oxon Universities’ Reform Society, announced its registration on 19 August, as Cherwell reported. Its Michaelmas term card lists Cofnas as speaking in Week 6 on academic freedom, the state of academia and DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion). The term card also lists Reform UK MP Andrew Rosindell, Traditional Unionist Voice leader Jim Allister and the commentator Neema Parvini.

According to the event’s Eventbrite page, shared with Overheard at Oxford by Cofnas, the talk, titled “An Evening with Nathan Cofnas: Is DEI Undermining Higher Education?”, will take place from 6pm to 7.30pm in the college’s Harris Lecture Theatre, followed by a Q&A. The same room hosted the society’s event with Reform UK MP Andrew Rosindell on 18 October. The society has not said whether the event will be open to non-members. Its terms of attendance, published in its term card, state that events “likely to attract controversy” will be restricted to members of the society.

In a statement to Overheard at Oxford, Oriel College said: “The event is a booking by a registered university society. The College permits events booked by students who are committee members of registered societies except in exceptional circumstances. Permission does not imply endorsement by the College of the many events that take place across our termly calendar.”

On 11 October, the society posted a “Statement on the invitation of Nathan Cofnas” on Instagram. Written in the language of diversity and inclusion, it says Cofnas “has been repeatedly victimised with stigmatising language and structural apartheid by those with institutional power and privilege”, and that “by allowing space for Cofnas’ lived experiences, representation at Oxford will finally be rebalanced”.

Who is Nathan Cofnas?

Cofnas is an American philosopher and a postdoctoral researcher at Ghent University in Belgium. He works on the philosophy of biology and ethics, and holds a DPhil in Philosophy from Oxford, as well as degrees from Cambridge and Columbia.

He is best known for arguing that genes play a role in average differences in IQ between racial groups, a position known as hereditarianism, which mainstream science rejects and critics call scientific racism. In February 2024, the leadership of the Cambridge branch of the University and College Union described his work as “race pseudo-science”. Cofnas disputes that his view is outside the mainstream. He told Overheard at Oxford that a 2020 survey of intelligence researchers found 84% of experts thought genes played at least some role in the Black-white IQ gap in the United States. He has also said that “race realism” is a standard term in the philosophy of biology, and that he opposes white nationalism.

From 2022 to 2025, he was a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow in Cambridge’s Faculty of Philosophy. In a February 2024 blog post predicting the effects of a purely colour-blind meritocracy, he wrote that “Blacks would disappear from almost all high-profile positions outside of sports and entertainment”. In April 2024, Emmanuel College, Cambridge, ended his research affiliation over the post, saying it could be read as a rejection of its diversity, equality and inclusion policies. A separate University of Cambridge investigation dismissed all 58 complaints about the post in October 2025, finding it was lawful free speech.

Recent controversy

His appointment at Ghent in early 2026 led to student protests and a petition calling for his dismissal, which gathered more than 2,000 signatures.

In the summer, Cofnas first made public allegations that Jason Arday, a professor of sociology of education at Cambridge, had plagiarised parts of his doctoral thesis. Professor Arday denied plagiarism, and Liverpool John Moores University, which awarded his PhD, concluded that the degree should stand. On 5 August, Cambridge opened an investigation following what it called new information about his academic qualifications and honorary appointments, and Professor Arday resigned. He died later that month.

On 20 August, Ghent University suspended Cofnas pending a preliminary disciplinary investigation, citing his recent public statements on the case. It later replaced the suspension with a three-month measure: he works remotely, may not teach, and must keep his research to the topics of his appointment. The investigation is ongoing.

The suspension divided academics. More than a dozen Oxford academics signed an open letter opposing it, while a counter-letter launched by academics at Ghent backed the university’s investigation.

On 30 September, Unia, Belgium’s equality body, announced it would push for his prosecution under Belgian anti-racism law. Cofnas responded on X that the complaint was the start of a formal process to jail him.

Overheard at Oxford contacted The Reform Society, Nathan Cofnas and Oriel College for comment. The responses from Cofnas and Oriel College are included above. The society had not responded by the time of publication.

Update, 23 October: Stand Up To Racism Oxfordshire has announced a protest against the event, assembling in Oriel Square at 5pm on 17 November. The group has also launched an open letter calling on Oriel College and the University to “refuse to host the OURS organised Cofnas meeting” and to support the society’s disaffiliation as a University society. In June, hundreds joined a protest outside the Oxford Union’s debate with Tommy Robinson, at which the group’s vice chairman spoke.