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Fall: 9/11/01 - 12/18/01
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An Autumn Before a Dark Winter

Links from Sept. 11, 2001 to Dec. 18, 2001

The first reaction was shocked disbelief. And then, as policemen and firemen picked through the ruins, the rest of the nation picked through its way through the the nightmare to come to some kind of understanding and action. For soldiers, policemen, and other security personnel, it was a sudden menace to be opposed. For statesmen and other public figures, it was a sudden duty to convey both the seriousness of the situation while setting an example of resolved calm. For parents, teachers, and scholars, it was a sudden duty to understand and to explain the nature of the disaster, so that children, students, and the public of a democracy could understand what had happened, and what may be coming.

In times of terrible stress, what would be a minor spat --- a contretemps between a talk show host and a university professor --- can create a storm that batters all those unlucky enough to be in its path.

These links are in a very rough chronological order. Again, links marked with an asterisk (*) are to the LEXIS-NEXIS site: this is restricted to on-campus users and requires that the user do a search; two asterisks (**) apply to other restrictions.

WARNING ABOUT `LINK ROT': Some websites take pages down, or restrict access to them, after some time passes. So unfortunately, some of the links on these pages will be inoperative. However, most of the items can be found by searching lexis-nexis.

Here are links forward to the next page, or fast forward to Current Events, or back to the site map, or up to the main Al-Arian page of this site, or even to the main UFF/USF page.

In politics,
what begins in fear
usually ends
in folly.

- Samuel Coleridge


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Aftermath
12/19/01 - 1/31/02
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A Shadow over New York

On September 11, 2001, terrorists destroyed two buildings and damaged a third, while killing over 3,000 people. It was the single greatest loss of American life due to violence in a day since the Civil War, and it left the nation in schock.
The University of South Florida closed for the day, but still a few people showed up.
Standing in a porch with fellow academics in front of an empty parking lot, we tried to make some sense of it.
OVERHEARD THAT DAY ON CAMPUS

GRADUATE STUDENT: It makes you afraid to fly or go into tall buildings.
PROFESSOR: That's the point. To make us afraid.

In the following days, USF Faculty helped reassure, explain, and educate students about this situation, and this kind of situation. One professor discussed the possible fall-out with his class, and talked about how the wars between ancient Greece and the Persian Empire can give us hints on what is to come. One professor told of how a Russian mathematician, suffering from cancer, kept his mind of the pain by doing mathematics. Faculty stood on familiar ground while trying to make sense of it all. And there were a number of campus reactions and activities as USF responded to the national tragedy.

Other universities had similar experiences, as reported in the Sept. 28 **After Sept. 11 Special Report of the Chronicle of Higher Education.

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The Great Fear

During World War I, it had been the Germans. During World War II, the Japanese. During the terrible days that followed the attacks, Muslim Americans and Muslim residents and visitors found themselves bracing for the suspicions of their neighbors.

These fears were substantiated in various events around the Tampa Bay Area and the country. A selection:
  • On Sept. 14, Bubba the Love Sponge Clem falsely claimed that a Syrian-born pediatrician had said, ``The U.S. got what they deserved.'' As reported in the *Sept. 15 Tampa Tribune, the doctor was deluged by `hundreds' of calls. Clem was unavailable for comment.
  • On Sept. 14, in the St. Petersburg Times, a list of ... incidents ... showed how Muslims feel local backlash; note the three radio DJs who claimed that Muslim students were dancing on campus in celebration of the attacks.
  • On Oct. 4, St. Petersburg Times columnist reports on an Afghan family being stalked.
  • The Oct. 30 St. Petersburg Times reported that Afghan hounds are HOUNDED by a name.
This is Florida after all, and Bubba the Love Sponge is one of Florida's more colorful ... characters. He has high ratings (see the audience analysis in the July 27 St. Petersburg Times) and is known for antics, like broadcasting the slaughter of a boar live on the air, for which he was prosecuted. He was, of course, acquitted, but not before using as a defense: his right of free speech. And on Sept. 14, he exercised his freedom of speech by claiming that Muslims at USF were celebrating the attacks (he is one of the three DJ's of the Sept. 14 St. Petersburg Times story above); the claim was mentioned in the Sept. 21 Tampa Tribune, along with another story of immigrant-baiting. (BTW, this alleged celebration was in fact the Sept. 11 vigil.) Later on, censorious commentators would describe Bubba's disinformation --- President Genshaft called them `false,' `reckless,' and `irresponsible' --- as the first omen, if not the first blow.

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Body Blow

On Sept. 26, Sami Al-Arian appeared on the Bill O'Reilly's talk show, the FOX News O'Reilly Factor. (This may be the most highly rated cable talk show in America, but some of its interviews are strangely unmentioned by its search engine.) Al-Arian apparently expected something a bit warmer and fuzzier --- perhaps a discussion of how appalled Muslims were by the attacks --- but Mr. O'Reilly was hot and sharp when he asked, What is going on at the University of South Florida? O'Reilly said that USF ``... may be a hotbed of support for Arab militants,'' and ``... if I was the CIA, I'd follow you wherever you went.'' The interview consisted largely of O'Reilly hurling a hardball at Al-Arian, who would try to respond, and occasionally complete a sentence before Mr. O'Reilly would hurl another hardball. After it was over, USF was labelled as a ``hotbed of terrorism,'' and was quickly bombarded by e-mails and phone calls. The most notorious phone call was one made to the Computer Science Department, which was deemed threatening enough to require that the C.S. Department be closed down for the day; it would not be until the January 9 meeting of the Faculty Senate that it would be revealed that the caller called back, an hour later, to apologize and assure that he meant no harm.

  • On Sept. 27, the Associated Press reported that *University officials call emergency meeting to discuss professor. On Sept. 28, the Associated Press reported that *USF cites safety concerns, puts Palestinian professor on leave, reporting the deluge of complaints and threats that arrived on campus since the show, including one threat that led to the closure of the Computer Science Department for that day.
  • The Oct. 28 Oracle echoed A hotbed for terrorism? The Oct. 28 Oracle reported President Genshaft said that she was ``... surprised that he was on national television at all and that he made the statements he chose to make''; she did not refer to which statement she was surprised by.
  • On Sept. 27, the St. Petersburg Times reported that TV leads USF to look at safety , in which USF spokesman Michael Riech said, ``What's going on at USF is research, teaching and service. That is its contribution to this community and country.'' On Sept. 29, the St. Petersburg Times reported that President Genshaft saw as the major problem that Al-Arian had not made it clear in the interview that he was speaking for himself. ``Dr. Al-Arian does not speak for the university . . . and it is incorrect to suggest that his views represent USF in any fashion,'' quoted the Times in their story. ``We have informed Dr. Al-Arian that when he expresses his views, he should make it clear at all times that he is speaking as a private person.''
  • On Sept. 28, the Tampa Tribune reported that *Fox News Program Links USF To Terrorists, and on Sept. 29 reported that *USF Puts Professor On Leave For Safety . On Sept. 29, the Tribune editorialized that *USF Board Correct To Act On Controversial Professor, although the Tribune seemed more concerned with Al-Arian's activities than the threats that officially justified placing him on leave.
There has been a lot of speculation about who clued O'Reilly into this controversy.

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The Story Has Wings

The suspension was news, all over.

The general impression given was that USF regarded Al-Arian himself as a security problem.

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On Campus

On campus, there were a lot of reactions.

  • On Sept. 28, President Genshaft delivered a a Report to the Trustees, in which she said that, ``Our first priority at USF is to maintain our campuses as safe places for the work of our students, faculty and staff.''
  • Perhaps with some justification, USF adminstrators were unwilling to appear on the O'Reilly Factor. Genshaft refused, much to O'Reilly's continuing ire, as did everyone between her and ... USF Student Body President and Student Member of the Board of Trustees Michael Griffin, whose Sept. 30 appearance was described in the Oct. 1 Oracle. The *transcript features this exchange:
    Griffin: I watched it [the Al-Arian interview] on tape, and I watched it that night on delay, and ... you need to give him [Al-Arian] a little bit more of an opportunity to get his message out.
    O'Reilly: Bologna.
    Griffin: Now come on.
  • Meanwhile, the Oct. 1 Oracle said that a Rebuttal needed by administration, saying, ``If anyone was to respond to numerous allegations swarming the campus, it should have been Genshaft -- not a student.''
  • On Oct. 2, Oracle columnist Colin Sherwin wrote a column on how O'Reilly only serves to antagonize.
  • In the Oct. 4 Oracle, in a column on how Al-Arian must have worst luck ever, Alex Hardman is skeptical of Al-Arian's defense.
  • The Oct. 5 Oracle reported that Another round of O'Reilly: Fox News' Bill O'Reilly says USF is `ridiculous' for allowing Professor Sami Al-Arian to stay.
  • The Oct. 8 Shanachie carried an Open Letter From Dr. Sami Al-Arian, in which he translates from the Qu'ran: ``whoever kills one innocent life is like he killed the whole of humanity, and whoever saves one life is as though he saved the whole of humanity.'' (This appears to be from The Dinner Table, 5.35.)
  • On Oct. 15, in the Oracle, President Genshaft wrote in Good ideas will triumph over bad ones: saying that, ``Ideas are the lifeblood of universities,'' she writes that, ``For us to make our best contribution, universities must be places with a high tolerance for expression that does not violate the rights of others.''
  • As reported on Oct. 17, it was now USF/UFF President Roy Weatherford's turn to appear on the O'Reilly Factor. In this Oct. 16 *interview, Weatherford said: ``My main concern is to make sure that the people of America understand why it is that we defend people's rights, even in this difficult time.'' O'Reilly at one point said: ``I respect you for coming on here, and I respect academic freedom. Believe me, I make my living, freedom of speech.''
  • As a reminder of what else was going on ... The anthrax scare, which began in Florida, had a false alarm in the Oracle newsroom, as described in the column by editor Kevin Graham.
  • On Oct. 30, Oracle columnist Colin Sherwin asks Is Al-Arian coming back?.

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Off Campus

And there were reactions off campus, too.

A few local groups got involved. The Tampa Bay Coalition for Peace and Justice, which Al-Arian helps run, has not gotten around to getting a website.

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Darkness at noon ...

Quite rapidly, some commentators (largely Right-wing) started attacking their favorite suspects. Anyone who dissented in any way could get in serious trouble, as observed in Howard Troxler's Oct. 1 St. Petersburg Times column These days, a narrow line defines how we criticize. Academia was especially hard hit.

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``... pressure ...''

One must be aware of the pressures that the Board of Trustees and the Administration of the University of South Florida face. USF, which the Legislature has long treated as a distant third after UF and FSU, is again rethinking its mission, as reported in the *Nov. 7 Tampa Tribune. But more to the point:

And there are other forms of pressure.

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Consultation

UFF requested a consultation with President Genshaft. The contract provides for periodic consultations between UFF and the Administration to discuss outstanding issues, but if something important comes up, UFF and the Administration can agree to have a special consultation. The consultation was on Oct. 11.

  • Representing the Administration was President Genshaft, Dean of Engineering Louis Martin-Vega, Assistant Provost Phil Smith, and an individual identified in the web-master's notes as ``?''
  • Representing UFF was USF Chapter President Roy Weatherford, Vice President and Grievance Chair Mark Klisch, Statewide Contract Enforcement Chair Surendra Singh, USF Bargaining Chair Rob Welker, Secretary Maggie Doherty, USF/UFF Senator Greg McColm, USF/UFF Senator Art Shapiro, and activist A. Hechiche.
  • Genshaft began with a description of the disruption caused by the threatening phone call to the C.S. Department, and Martin-Vega included a description of how the press conference on Professor Murphy's robots (sent to WTC) were disrupted.
  • Weatherford presented his concern that the suspension was a punishment of a victim --- and that the faculty would view it as such. He asked if the Administration had considered having Al-Arian continue teaching his class over the web (distance education), and Martin-Vega said the subject never came up.
  • Genshaft said that this was purely a security issue, and that she knew that she made the right decision. As for ending the suspension, she said that this was not the time for Al-Arian to return. But after Weatherford said that letters sent to Al-Arianby the Administration sounded like the Administration didn't want him to come back at all, there was this exchange:
    Klisch: Do you want him to come back?
    Genshaft:We want him to come back.

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Grace ... and otherwise ... under pressure

And USF started to deal with the pressure:

  • Other faculty groups met with Genshaft, as reported in the Oct. 10 Oracle, to express their concern about academic freedom and also about due process. In response, President Genshaft told the Oracle (for Oct. 12) that ``We're trying to do everything we can to ensure safety.''
  • Responding to pressure to discipline or dismiss Al-Arian, President Genshaft wrote a column for the Oct. 14 Tampa Tribune on how *Controversy Demands That University Balance Freedom And Security. Her column concludes with these lines: ... the truly great universities are the ones that have the character to remain focused on their core values during political turbulence and social upheaval. And they know that enduring freedom is built on the rule of law, on due process and on the belief that if people are free to speak, free to think and free to challenge, good ideas will triumph over the bad.
  • The matter came before the Faculty Senate.
    • In the minutes of the Oct. 17 meeting of the Faculty Senate, Report # 3 on the ``Current University Crises,'' the Senate passed the following motion: We condemn the death threats against Dr. Al-Arian, President Genshaft, and other members of the University of South Florida community. We support placing Dr. Al-Arian on leave for his safety and for the safety of the campuses. We are fully in support of President Genshaft's concern for safety and the convening of the Task Force on Campus Safety and Security. We recommend that the activities of the university community return to normal as soon as possible. We reaffirm that the responsible exercise of academic freedom is a vitally important right of faculty and must continue to be respected and protected.
    • The Oct. 22 - Nov. 5 Faculty Forum announced that `Senate supports Genshaft's decision in Al-Arian case.'
    • The Oct. 18 Oracle reported that Faculty Senate drafts support for Genshaft.
    • On Nov. 9, USF Faculty Senator Steven Johnston resigned from the Senate in a letter which he has kindly permitted us to post. The Dec. 3 Shanachie published this letter.
About this time, we have two views of the fundamental principles involved. Then there was another blow. NBC Dateline ran a segment on the Al-Arian issue on Oct. 28. They spent an hour taping comments from USF/UFF President Roy Weatherford, but everything he said wound up on the cutting room floor. Al-Arian refused to be interviewed. The result was a great deal of Steven Emerson and some old videos of a younger Al-Arian talking like an adolescent out of the 60s. There is a *transcript on Lexis. (And of course, clips were aired on NBC Nightly News.) This launched another flurry of sounds and furies.

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A Statement on Academic Freedom

The union decided to go beyond quiet expressions of concern to louder expressions of serious concern. A Statement on Academic Freedom was composed by members of the USF/UFF Executive Committee and concerned faculty, and was published as an advertisement on p. 6 of the Nov. 1, 2001 Oracle.

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He Said, She Said

This is why critical instructions are usually made in writing. Provost David Stamps says he told Al-Arian on Sept. 28 (when Al-Arian was put on leave) that Al-Arian was not permitted to come on campus. Al-Arian says that he cannot recall the oral instruction. Anyway, he visited campus on Oct. 5. On Oct. 8, Stamps sent a written instruction.

Left unsaid was that this sort of instruction is usually given to a faculty member who is believed to be disruptive or violent; it is rarely given to a faculty member who is believed to be the target of disruptive or violent third parties.

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Suddenly ...

... as the St. Petersburg Times reported on Nov. 25, without explanation and again without any description of what it suspects or knows, the INS re-arrests Al-Arian's brother-in-law. This is also described in the Nov. 26 Oracle article on how Mazen Al-Najjar has Nowhere to go.
And on Dec. 1, the Tampa Tribune announces that in 1995, the FBI found a suspicious document outlining `subversive action' in Al-Arian's home. After six years, leak or plant?

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Christmas Break

A bit about freedom of speech ...
In east central campus, just north of Cooper Hall (where the Dean of Arts and Sciences live), the Terrell Sessums Mall holds flea markets every Wednesday. Five days a week, students buy fast food at Cooper Hall and sit on the lawn in front to people-watch the Mall. And some of the people they watch are very watchable indeed. There are occasional demonstrations and frequent visitors, especially of preachers who come and harangue the students. Readers who recall John the Baptist calling his audience vipers and scorpions will not be surprised that some preachers use comparable language, at lunch time, in front of Cooper Hall. And of course, some proponents of good digestion want to ban them. On Dec. 3, the Oracle wrote in an editorial about one particular family of preachers, that Preachers have freedom of speech: ``If they were unable to express their beliefs, then everyone would eventually be silenced.''
Thus arriveth Christmas Break. In some ways, the whole Al-Arian episode seemed to be blowing over. Of course, things were still going on.

  • Al-Arian gave a speech at a forum sponsored by Amnesty International (see the Dec. 10 *Tampa Tribune and *Associated Press).
  • On Nov. 30, O'Reilly interviewed WFLA Newsradio 970 newsman Ted Webb, in which Webb and O'Reilly bashed Al-Arian while blaming Clinton and, more to the point, Jeb Bush, for not doing something drastic about Al-Arian already. (On Dec. 7, O'Reilly prefaced his interview with Chuck Nash with a condemnation of Jeb Bush for refusing to respond to O'Reilly's queries.)
So the story was still going, but only by active blowing on it. With Christmas coming, it was not clear whether the story would continue, or die down. Perhaps it would be wise for the USF Administration to wait and see.
But the USF Administration does have the history of making ... controversial ... decisions during such breaks. In the past, such a decision, once made during a break, usually became a fait accompli, while faculty groused or impotently spun conspiracy theories. This time, things would be a bit different ...

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In the Middle of the Night ...

On Dec. 19, the St. Petersburg Times announced that USF trustees to hear report on Al-Arian; note that Al-Arian was not even notified, much less invited.
Note that the announcement came in late afternoon, for a meeting the following morning, which is not exactly consistent with the 24-hour notice recommended by the Florida Attorney General in accordance with the Florida Sunshine Law.
Whatever was coming, something was not right.


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Aftermath
12/19/01 - 1/31/02
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Major Postings
The Issues
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An Overview of the Entire Controversy
Background: Before Sept. 11
The Year 2001 - 2002
The Year 2002 - 2003
Recent News
The year 2001 - 2002:
Fall: 9/11/01 - 12/18/01
Aftermath: 12/19/01 - 1/31/02
Second Thoughts: 2/1/02 - 3/19/02
Alarums & Excursions: 3/19/02 - 6/10/02
Summertime: 6/11/02 - 8/20/02
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