Who is Nathan Cofnas, the self-styled ‘race realist’ at centre of Jason Arday plagiarism row

Nathan Cofnas (L), who exposed Cambridge professor Jason Arday’s plagiarism, suspended by Ghent University.

Nathan Cofnas, the American academic who brought plagiarism allegations against Jason Arday into the spotlight, has himself been suspended by Ghent University in Belgium, days after the former Cambridge professor was found dead after intense scrutiny over his academic work.Arday, a Black former Cambridge professor, had resigned earlier this month amid rising scrutiny of his academic work following Cofnas’s detailed Substack post, which questioned its integrity.Arday was later found dead on August 14. The developments have now placed Cofnas, a self-styled “race realist” previously dismissed from Cambridge’s Emmanuel College over his views on race and intelligence, at the centre of the controversy.

Who is Nathan Cofnas?

Cofnas is an American philosopher whose work focuses on the philosophy of biology and ethics. He studied philosophy at Columbia University before completing master’s degrees at Cambridge and Oxford, and later earned a doctorate from Oxford.In 2022, he joined Cambridge as an early-career research fellow and also became a research associate at Emmanuel College.He has described himself as a “race realist” and has long argued for greater discussion of hereditarianism — the idea that inherited genetics plays a major role in shaping traits such as intelligence and personality.

The Jason Arday plagiarism row

Cofnas returned to the spotlight in July after publishing a Substack post alleging that parts of Arday’s PhD thesis closely matched earlier academic work.Arday denied intentional plagiarism, acknowledged errors in his work, and attributed some problems to inadequate supervision and his autism.The allegations led to intense scrutiny of Arday’s academic record and personal claims, eventually leading to his resignation from Cambridge.Arday was later found dead at his London home. Cofnas has said he does not regret publishing his findings, although he also said Arday was unfairly hounded by the media and let down by Cambridge.

Why has Ghent University suspended him?

Cofnas, who joined Ghent University as a postdoctoral researcher this year, announced on X that he had been suspended and said he expected to be fired.The university confirmed the suspension, saying it valued academic freedom and open debate, including contentious views, but added that such freedom was “not unlimited” and came with responsibility.Ghent has not publicly detailed the allegations against him, and said the personnel process remained confidential.

Why was he removed from Cambridge?

Cofnas sparked a major backlash at Cambridge in 2024 after writing that talent was not distributed equally across groups and claiming that, under a meritocratic system, Black people would largely disappear from high-profile positions outside sport and entertainment.The remarks triggered protests, a petition signed by more than 1,200 students and academics, and formal complaints from 58 Emmanuel College students.Emmanuel College later terminated his position, saying his views challenged its “core values and mission”.Cofnas sued the college for alleged belief discrimination but lost. Cambridge University later dismissed the student complaints, saying his published views did not breach its rules.