Tami speaks to Prof Jonathan Jansen, past Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State. They discuss the effect that student protests at South African universities since 2015 have had on academic freedom in the country. Does academic freedom mean that there should be a limitation on students’ right to protest? Should academic freedom be compromised in the interests of short-term political gain? They end with a conversation about the risk of state involvement in academic institutions’ decision making.