The experience of New York University after the Cambodia-Kent crisis of May 1970 when court action nullified faculty decisions on the taking of exams, and the continuation of classes is indicative of the intrusive constraints derived from external forces on effective faculty self-government. This paper discusses: (1) the natural and intrinsic limitations on faculty participation in governance that include: the delegation of power by governing boards, the frequent absence or inadequacy of the structure for faculty self-government, the often negative faculty attitudes toward governance, the rapid expansion of higher education that has rendered decisionmaking more remote, and campus unrest; (2) the external threats to autonomy that include: restrictive and punitive legislation, recent court litigation, which has occasionally become a vehicle for criticism and repression of campus orthodoxy, campus surveillance by police and FBI agents, collective bargaining, the serious financial problems facing higher education, and the self-regulation process; and (3) some ways that faculty can combat these incursions and thus restore some control over the character and destiny of their profession. (AF)