Academic censorship often begins not with overt repression but with the discursive framing of a perceived threat. Such campaigns unfold in three phases: casting dissenters as existential threats, amplifying the threat through media and political discourse, and publicly penalizing dissent to deter others. Dissent is reimagined as deviance—a danger to institutional integrity, societal order, or national security—thereby justifying repressive measures (Cohen 1972; Hall et al. 1978). Universities have historically participated in this process. During the McCarthy era, the House Un-American Activities Committee policed political ideology through public hearings and blacklists, prompting institutions to enforce conformity. At the University of California, the board of regents imposed a loyalty oath in 1950, resulting in thirty-one terminations; over 100 faculty nationwide lost positions under similar pressures (Heins 2013; Schrecker 1986). These dismissals were not isolated policy decisions—they were performative acts of ideological purification designed to signal compliance and suppress resistance.