Cambridge professor Jason Arday sent friend heartbreaking final message before his death
A friend of Jason Arday has paid tribute to the 'extraordinary' former professor while revealing the tragic contents of their final conversation.
Those closest to the 41-year-old have been speaking out about the 'relentless scrutiny' he was under in the weeks leading up to his death and the toll this took on him.
Arday, who resigned from his position at Cambridge University on 5 August amid a plagiarism row, was found dead in Battersea, south London on Friday (14 August).
The family of the late academic issued a statement about his passing, which they say comes after he 'was subjected to a campaign of sustained abuse' during his time at Cambridge.
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"The campaign of misinformation was too much for Jason, who was a gentle man and who always wanted to see the best in everyone," Arday's loved ones said.
"We are in shock to have lost this amazing father, partner, brother, uncle and son," while urging the media to 'leave us alone now'.
According to Arday's pal Sarah Carney, the former professor of sociology said he had been 'broken' by the plagiarism saga the day before he stepped down from his role at Cambridge.
Speaking to the Socialist Worker, she revealed the final messages that she exchanged with her friend - who she described as 'charming, kind and gentle as well as articulate and intelligent'.
Carney told the publication: "I reminded him of how he’d come back from the defeats he’d faced in life. And I said, 'You will overcome this'. But Jason replied, 'Not this time, Sarah. They always win'.
“He said everything he’d achieved was ruined, and he was 'broken'."
'He just gave off such a light'
The pair met back in 2008 in London and Carney said her good friend 'immediately' made people feel welcome, adding: "He just gave off such a light...everyone felt like they were his friend."
She also poignantly discussed Arday's passion for charitable endeavours, saying that he 'raised loads of money' for good causes over the years.
Carner also acknowledged how Arday had defied expectations despite dealing with dyslexia and autism. He was non-verbal until he turned 11 and learned to read and write when he was 18.
“I believe that if you’re a black, working class boy from a south London estate - even without learning difficulties - you start so much lower down," Carney continued.
"Much lower down than mediocre white middle class people. So, you have to work ten times harder than everyone else to get to the same academic level, just to overcome the racism in society."
She claimed that he was a 'diversity, equality and inclusion poster boy' for Cambridge and that his appointment as the professor of sociology of education riled up 'mediocre academics who felt overlooked and undermined'.
Carner said her 'vulnerable, kind and gentle' friend was 'really strong', while adding: "And if he couldn’t deal with it, then who the bloody hell can?"
A former colleague of Arday's at Cambridge has also told how he confessed that he 'couldn't go on' in the hours before his death.
University of Cambridge professor and director of the Autism Research Centre, Sir Simon Baron-Cohen, told the BBC: "He was being subjected to relentless scrutiny, including ridicule, discrediting absolutely every detail of his life, and he wasn’t coping with the loss of his career, the loss of his reputation, and he felt he couldn’t go on."
Campaigner Sir Patrick Vernon launched a fundraiser on GoFundMe in honour of Arday, which has received more than £44,000 at the time of writing.
The money will go towards costs for his funeral and memorial, among other things.
A vigil which will be held in Arday's memory has also been organised by Stand Up To Racism. It will be held on the steps of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, central London, at 6pm on Monday.
LADbible has contacted Cambridge University for comment.
Olivia Burke