List of known Sami Al-Arian defenders with direct quotes

Re-instate Sami Al-Arian Petition ^ | Thursday 02/20/03

[alisasny]

Salon.com "The prime-time smearing of Sami Al-Arian By pandering to anti-Arab hysteria, NBC, Fox News, Media General and Clear Channel radio disgraced themselves -- and ruined an innocent professor's life." Salon Eric Boehlert January 19, 2002

Please add all known defenders with quotes they made in defense of Sami AL-Arian that you can find so we have a record of all of them.

[pabianice]

Palestinian supporters seek his release

From the National Desk

Published 1/14/2002 5:32 PM

TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 14, 2002 (UPI) -- A University of South Florida professor said Monday he intends to fight school administration attempts to fire him for his alleged ties to Palestinian terrorists.

Sami al Arian asked University President Judith Genshaft to reconsider her intent to dismiss him. She said she would study his response but did not back down on her stand.

Al-Arian, a Palestinian-born computer science professor, has taught at South Florida for 16 years.

"This is a unique case of how one person's activities outside the scope of his employment have resulted in harm to the legitimate interests of the university," she said.

"Our primary concern is the safety of the learning environment for students, faculty and staff," she said. "A safe campus is essential for academic freedom, learning and teaching to flourish."

Florida's college faculty union said it supports Al Arian and will lead the fight for his position if he asks for the support.

"What people need to understand about the culture of academic life is that the intellectual freedom in this environment is more important than whether you like any individuals who exercise that freedom," said Tom Auxter, president of the state faculty union (www.uwire.com).

Al Arian in the past has made anti-Israeli comments and has had documented associations with people linked to terrorism. The union said he has never been charged with a crime and the reasons for firing him were "trumped up" so he could be dismissed.

[johniegrad]

Good post. It will difficult to sue the university from prison.

[gridlock]

19. summer Â

Summer, is that you?

[talleyman]

Go to the most recent signatures page on the reinstatement document posted above for a few laughs

LOL! Hysterical stuff - thanks!

[alisasny]

3409. Ann Mauney As a student and teacher of U.S. history, I am convinced that your firing of Professor Sami Al-Arian violates our fundadmental Constitutional guarantees of due process and free speech.

Al-Arian is not an American citizen...sheesh.

[mabelkitty]

"This is a unique case of how one person's activities outside the scope of his employment have resulted in harm to the legitimate interests of the university," she said.

No kidding. Do what you want. Don't expect you have a "right" to be employed because of it, and don't expect you won't be arrested because, even though you scream racism, it's really all about killing the jews and Christians.

Die you scum filth, die!

[Camachee]

Chanting "Death to Israel" is NOT academic freedom.

How about chanting "Saddam must go"?

Being a KNOWN supporter of terrorism is NOT academic freedom.

Why not? Are you the arbiter of which groups I can donate funds to? Should Hillary Clinton be able to stop me from donating to the NRA?

My point remains that as long as no laws are broken, no censorship should be permitted. There is a reson why freedom of speech is contained in the FIRST Amendment. It's a crucial freedom.

[mabelkitty]

I work. In my place of business, I can't curse.

Boy o boy. Do I sue for free speech infringement and get fired, or do I use both my brain cells and decide perhaps I should not curse?

[mabelkitty]

YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT PRIVATE DEALINGS!! HE WAS DOING THIS AT A TAXPAYER SUBSIDIZED JOB!!!

[Interesting Times]

The people who signed that petition were defending Al-Arian's academic freedom.

Of course they did. After all, he's only a high-ranking international terrorist with the blood of hundreds of innocent people on his hands.

I mean, it isn't like he opposed affirmative action or anything.

[dennisw]

The people who signed that petition were defending Al-Arian's academic freedom. He was suspended for attracting bad press to the university.

Now the CIA and the FBI have him in their clutches. You think Sami is blameless? The man is a fundraiser for violent Islamic movements.

Are witch hunts a part of your vision of a "free republic"?

Shut up idiot. The left stifles right wing students and professors. The scummy left hires only it's own. That's why English departments are infested with feminists, post colonialists, deconstructionists, neo-Marxists and all kinds of  nouveau  commie "professors" and teaching assistants.

Check out the freaks in the English department of Harvard university you hypocrite!
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~english/people/facultyprofiles.html

 

 

Their interests as listed:

Postcolonial Anglophone Literatures;

Colonial and Post-Colonial Theory

Questions of Culture and Globalization.

Gender and Cultural Studies;

Criticism and Critical Theory;

Gender Theory; Feminist Theory

Literary Theory

Narrative Theory;

Genre Theory and Criticism

Critical Prose;

Marxism;

Language of Physical Pain;

Ethnicity;

Literature of New World Slavery.

[Fred Mertz]

Shermy, thanks for your additional inputs to this thread.

[Darksheare]

Oh, I see. Saddam only supports terrorism, and is a direct threat to not only the area his pathetic little dirtball of a nation is in, but to us.
So, thus in your sight, we must not oust him.
Never mind that he's used VX, Sarin, and blodd agent gases on the Iranians and his own people. And would use nukes as soon as he felt powerful, or threatened enough, to use them.

Never mind that he backed up monetarily the 9/11 attack, as did North Korea, and CHINA, Saudi Arabia, and a nice long list of other nations.

How about Saddam, right? Let's leave him alone then.
This has nothing to do with academic freedom, got it yet?
It's about terrorism and terrorists.
It's about an insane death cult and evil.
It's about hate.
You don't seem to understand that there ARE terorists in country here, and they are doing everything they can to 'educate' the masses to their whim so that it'll be easier to cow us. (Follow? No? Then go READ some info. It's all over here. Just look hard enough, it'll practically LEAP at you.)
And aiding the enemy is treason.
Al Arian has supported, and is a terorist.
It's NOT about academic freedom OR censorship.
Unlock your brain and figure it out.

[Camachee]

HE WAS DOING THIS AT A TAXPAYER SUBSIDIZED JOB!!!

You don't need to shout. I can hear you. LOL!

USF and the Florida University System have a statement on academic freedom, which is generally reflective of that written by the Chronicle of Higher Education (admittedly a left-leaning rag). If he has violated that statement, it is up to the University to sanction him as a contractual breech. But if he doesn't violate his contract, he can say anything he wants. Remember that the head of the faculty forum condemned this guy for his speech (content), but protected his right to make his views known within the community.

[Jack Stephens]

I never said he was blameless. Do you think Al-Arian should be given a trial, or is that just a waste of time?

So, who decides who gets fired? Should university administrators be empowered to fire anyone they disagree with?

Spare me the name calling.

[Darksheare]

"No! Stop tarring defenders of academic freedom as "villains"! "
"I never said he was blameless..."

Really.

[mlo]

If that professor is found guilty, I would imprison every single individual who defended him. If Chavez can take over a country for evil motives, then we can stop evil people here by good motives...to protect our nation and our people. It is time.

That may be the most un-American statement I've ever read on FR.

[Camachee]

So, thus in your sight, we must not oust him.

Don't be any more absurd than is absolutely necessary, okay?.

I was giving an example of a statement with which I thought you would agree, just as I do. My point was/is that there are people who object to you saying it. Should they have the right to stop you? No. But, you think you have the right to stop the speech of someone who takes a different view. You are simply wrong. Either we all have free speech or none of has it. This is not about whether Saddam should go. It's about censorship.

[SarahW]

No, you should pay attention to those who would defend leaders of violent extremist organizations. We should make sure they aren't defending the ideology, actions and goals of the accused.
If they are, they should be canned, too. One should be sure that "defense of academic freedom" is not a pretext for defending the ideas.

If Sami had been advocating lynching of black people, and collecting money for the cause, that wouldn't fall under the protection of academic freedom. Nor should his "leadership" in the bloody murder of Israelis or others who stand in the way of world domination of the muslim faith.

[Darksheare]

Me, absurd?
What about your whole post?

To equate the canning and arrest of a KNOWN terrorist with going after Saddam is mentally, morally, and ethically deficient and proves that one cannot think logically, let alone operate on a NORMAL level.

"But, you think you have the right to stop the speech of someone who takes a different view."
Have I said what I believe yet?
Then shut your mouth until I do. To state that I said the above without me having done so is the same beahvior shown by LIBERAL DEMOCRATS.
Besides, to prove your point you have to ignore alot of evidence that the guy is a known terrorist/ terrorist supporter.

Go home, little one.