Posted on 05/04/2007 2:53:13 PM PDT by Congressman Billybob
I’m writing to you because you are part of the Gang of 88, the Professors at Duke University who took out a full-page ad in the Duke newspaper to condemn the three students who were charged with various sexual crimes. You asserted they were guilty, and condemned them in many ways, before any open evidence had been presented, or any trial held.
Now, as you well know, all charges have been dismissed. The North Carolina Attorney General has dismissed all charges and has stated that there is no credible evidence that any crime was committed. Furthermore, States Attorney Nifong who brought the charges, is now under investigation.
One of the Gang of 88 has recognized that the ad he signed was improper, and has apologized. You have not apologized. You have dug the hole deeper by your own errors. Hence, this letter is addressed only to you, though the other 86 faculty who have not apologized are cordially invited to read this over your shoulder.
A friend of mine, who is a veteran, and a black man, sent two e-mails to all 88 of the Professors. He received a response only from you. I’ll quote his e-mails, and your response. But first, I’ll tell readers the titles you have at Duke.
You are the Co-Director, Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity and Gender in the Social Sciences at Duke. You are also a Professor of Political Science, Public Policy and African and African American Studies at Duke University. Your most recent book, "Can We All Get Along?" like the rest of your career, is focused on racial matters.
My friend wrote to you about the “historical reality such as the marginalization of innocent blacks within a once overtly racist criminal justice system or the past subjugation of women or any number of other offenses and attempts to apply that to a contemporary situation wherein the objective facts don’t apply.” He noted perversion of the facts in the Tawana Brawley case, and in the Duke case.
My friend reached the same conclusion that the Attorney General did later, that an “an unscrupulous DA ... [chose] to exploit racial identity politics.” How did you respond to this rational and correct description of the situation? Your reply said, “Your continued messages have now moved into the realm of harassment and I have reported you to your service provider for using abusive and inappropriate language in your email which was sent through their servers.”
Not only was your reply irrational and emotional, it also contained a threat against the correspondent. No one who is, as you signed yourself, a Professor of Political Science at Duke University, should think or write in this manner.
For additional proof that your only concern is who is the black person in any situation, and therefore is on the correct side of the matter, look at a newest instance of rape charges at Duke. This time the woman who says she was attacked, is white. The people charged are black. Not one word has been said about this by you, or any other member of the Gang of 88.
Your correspondent said that he thought “universities are about the exchange of ideas.” He decried “political correctness” at Duke, or at any other university, as both wrong and an attack on the whole reason that universities exist in our society. As a former Professor of Political Science, I thoroughly agree.
The first night of class, when I taught American Political Theory, I told my students, “Do not trust pre-chewed conclusions, from anyone including me. Research the facts, read the documents, reach your own conclusions.” Why is it I get the distinct impression that you would never dare say that to your own students?
If you do not apologize to the unjustly charged Duke students, you indicate that your politics and teaching are driven by blackness, by being an Afro-American, and nothing else. It is the opposite of being a Professor, and you should not remain one long.
There’s no need to reply to this letter. It will be sufficient reply when I hear that you’ve had the integrity to resign from Duke, or the university has had the gumption to fire you.
Cordially,
John Armor, Esq.
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About the Author: John Armor practiced in the US Supreme Court for 33 years. John_Armor@aya.yale.edu He lives in the 11th District of North Carolina.
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We have a lot of work ahead of us, as the Leftists may have lost in the real world of running economies, but they have won the hearts and minds of those who style themselves the intelligentsia.
Conservatives need to continue to creat alternative institutions, as we have done for media, and move on to challenge the predominance of the Leftist academics.
Whether we do this by challenging those institutions or create new ones is the question, but I think we will hit a wall soon if we don't tackle this problem.
The endowments of these entrenched Leftist institutions are enormous. At minimum, we need to do what you have done, which is to hoist them on their own petard of ideas, by exposing them as hypocrites and fools.
As has been stated, sunlight is a disinfectant.
Thanks for cracking open the window here.
I look forward to an America which recognizes only two races of Human Beings, as Viktor Frankel described: the Decent and the Indecent.
What the hell is the positive outcome of "Race, Ethnicity and Gender studies" anyway?
We used to call it "Underwater Basket-Weaving" back in the day.
Duke could end up under new ownership this summer. I expect to see billion-dollar lawsuits against Duke and the city of Durham and a hundred or so million-dollar suits against individuals. Duke is there for the taking; the potential for the basic annihilation of the leftwing power structure at a major university is there.
It is the quintessential American Way of settling an issue, and one that the Leftists LOVE to employ.
Once again, judo is in order here, and we can flip them using one of their own favorite tactics.
I hope each and every one of the 88 professors is sued personally, and that Duke itself is sued for libeling the accused players, the coach, and the other lacrosse team members.
The Revolution has Begun!
Have you heard back from her again?
There were even instances of leftist profs calling those players rapists in classrooms. It's fairly astonishing that none of the profs got broken or damaged in the process.
Obviously the Lacrosse players and their supporters were more honorable than the professors.
Someday, in the not-too-distant future, another Declaration of Independence, with its own list of causus belli wull be printed, and the Duke Lacrosse case will be among the incidents cited.
Your reply said, “Your continued messages have now moved into the realm of harassment and I have reported you to your service provider for using abusive and inappropriate language in your email which was sent through their servers.”
Not only was your reply irrational and emotional, it also contained a threat against the correspondent.
(Sad to say) What he and you expect? They are never wrong, and if you dare challenge them they can only respond with threats.
If a conservative orders a hamburger and there’s no liberal around is he/she still a racists pig?
Rogue elements? I wonder.
We see too much of this sort of thing on many many campuses for it to be just a rogue element.
You asked if I heard back from Ms. McClain.
No, I didn’t. I was surprised. I expected to be threatened.
Maybe you’ll hear back on Monday. If so, please let us know!
By all that is America ... thank you!
Racism is evil.
To those who say that blacks cannot be racist I submit “Dr.” McClain as Exhibit #1 . . . and rest my case.
John / Billybob
Excellent letter.
John / Billybob
Good work Congressman Billybob....people should understand that the expressions of McClain/Gang of 88 are standard operating proceedure in English depts across the country....THIS IS HOW YOU GET PROMOTED!!....my wife taught English at George Washington, UNC-Charlotte, Appalachian State and a local community college...it’s all the same!....if you want tenure; you best parrot the party line...most people don’t know this and the Academy likes it that way....that’s why they got so shook up when Horowitz published his book (The 100 Most Dangerous Professors)last year....they’re afraid that trustees and budget committees will refuse to continue to fund their Leftist agenda.
Stonewalls....waaay up in a holler in Ashe County, NC
Great letter, John. Of course, very few of the Gang of 88 will ever apologize. They have simply crawled back into their holes.
Professional Black-that was a term I used to myself to describe certain individuals I met while in the Navy. Professional Blacks brought race into every issue and were generally more concerned about their race than the Navy. There was always at least one per ship. There was also the Professional Female. Most scary was the Professional Black Female. We had one on my last ship.
it is said that blacks cannot be racists because they do not hold power over the majority... but with their ascension to authoritative positions they do have the power and influence that their racial overtones can hurt as any bigot’s behavior can.
we are but one race... the human race... it is class that sets us apart... and i mean class as in character not economic...
teeman
She was so uppity she wouldn’t talk to herself, most days. As my bride remarked, she sent her shirts out to be stuffed.
John / Billybob
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