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CounterPunch
August
26, 2002
Fighting for Right of Dissent
& Due Process
by Sami Al-Arian
It was the summer of 1976 when I took my first
civics course, along with four other courses. I was 18 and determined
to graduate in three years with an engineering degree. Class
discussion on the first day centered on the Watergate scandal
and the separation of powers. Having come from a region where
authoritarian regimes and political repression thrive, I was
fascinated with the American system of government. By the end
of the week, the professor asked us to research what he called
the "2 D's": dissent and due process, cornerstones
of American democracy.
Looking in the Arabic-English dictionary,
I could not find the word "due process." So I looked
up the two words separately. Put together, they did not make
much sense to me. It was many discussions later that I grasped
this novel idea of the American justice system. Little did I
know that two decades later, I would be in the national spotlight
in a heated debate concerning the two D's.
By now, much of America has heard of
my case. Pick up any newspaper, turn to any news channel or surf
the Internet and you're sure to learn of the tenured University
of South Florida professor under the threat of being fired for
controversy stemming from activism for the Palestinian cause.
Not only have many of these media reports frequently misrepresented
the facts, but they are to a large extent responsible for my
current predicament.
Moreover, in a number of ways my case
is indicative of the status of civil liberties in post-9/11 America.
In the wake of the attacks against our country, it is conceivable
that public reaction to the misinformation about me would be
frantic. It is distressing, however, that many in this country
seized the moment of widespread fear to rehash accusations that
a federal judge already had thrown out of court. Recent charges
by USF are clearly politically motivated attacks on freedom of
speech. All of these allegations have been rejected outright
in a court of law.
In the case of my brother-in-law, Mazen
Al-Najjar, who was detained on the basis of secret evidence for
nearly four years, immigration judge R. Kevin McHugh ultimately
said the following concerning the organizations in question:
"Although there were allegations that the ICP (Islamic Committee
for Palestine) and WISE (World Islamic Studies Enterprise) were
fronts for Palestinian political causes, there is no evidence
before the court that demonstrates that either organization was
a front for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. To the contrary, there
is evidence in the record to support the conclusion that WISE
was a reputable and scholarly research center and the ICP was
highly regarded."
This same ruling was upheld by a three-judge
panel in Washington, D.C., and then-Attorney General Janet Reno,
who all had access to the secret evidence. This did not stop
irresponsible journalists from reaching their own conclusions.
Throughout this ordeal, among other things, my views have been
completely misrepresented.
I have never once in my life advocated
the killing of innocent civilians. I abhor terrorism at all levels,
against all people. I condemn all violence against civilians
-- regardless of the faith of the perpetrators -- whether they
are in pizza parlors, bus stations or refugee camps. It's wrong
not only politically, but, more important, on religious, moral
and ethical grounds.
Following the Sept. 11 tragedy, I was
one of the first Muslim leaders to condemn the attacks and call
for justice for the victims. Within a few days, our mosque and
the Islamic Community of Tampa Bay collected more than $10,000
for the victims' fund in New York, and I led a blood drive during
which 75 local Muslims participated. In addition, I presided
over a three-hour ecumenical service where all Abrahamic faiths
were represented. The Islamic teachings of cooperation, unity
and tolerance for all faith communities became visible during
this painful time.
Throughout much of my last 25 years,
I've given hundreds of sermons and speeches, as well as participated
in many debates and panel discussions. America's promise for
me was to give equal opportunity to all points of view, whether
popular or unpopular. This is the meaning of the first "D,"
the right to dissent. As a stateless Palestinian refugee, I appreciated
the freedom and opportunity afforded to me to talk about the
importance of ending the injustices done to the Palestinians.
As recent events have played out, however,
I am very certain that I am being punished because of my speeches
and political opinions of at least 10 years ago, none of which
was ever brought into the classroom. If I had said "Death
to God," even on campus, I would not be fired. Harvard professor
Alan Dershowitz, as recently as March of this year, has directly
advocated violence and torture against the Palestinians without
causing a stir. His job and his life were not threatened as a
result of these words. Unpopular opinions, even offensive ones,
are part of American intellectual life.
Certainly, in the heat of the moment,
one may not use the best expressions, especially during impromptu
presentations. I had such regrettable moments. However, on many
occasions, some of my speeches were misquoted, mistranslated,
or taken completely out of context. Here, I'm reminded of the
great Jewish philosopher Maimonides, who wrote to his translator,
Ibn Tibbon, in 1199. Ibn Tibbon was translating the work of his
teacher from Arabic to Hebrew and was seeking the author's advice.
This is part of what he said: "Let me premise one rule.
Whoever wishes to translate and aims at rendering each word literally
and at the same time adheres slavishly to the order of words
and sentences in the original will meet with much difficulty
and his rendering will be faulty and untrustworthy."
Throughout this saga, I have made my
positions on various issues clear to those who wish to know the
truth. With regard to the Middle East conflict, I have repeatedly
stated that Israel must choose two out of the following three
points: maintaining its exclusively Jewish character, being a
democratic state, and controlling all the territories. If it
chooses the first two, then there would be a two-state solution,
which the Oslo process attempted but failed to achieve with the
persistence of the brutal occupation and constant expansion of
illegal settlements. This option is called the 78-22 solution,
a Jewish state on 78 percent of historical Palestine, and a Palestinian
state on 22 percent of the land, including the West Bank, Gaza
and Arab East Jerusalem. However, if Israel insists on maintaining
control of the territories and adhering to democratic ideals,
this would mean the one-state solution, which I've always preferred
-- a bi-national, non-sectarian state. Palestinians would become
full citizens and enjoy the same rights as Jews: one person,
one vote as happened in South Africa. In addition, this would
solve the right of return problem, as the one state would easily
accommodate the return of refugees as well as Jews, the world
over.
The third alternative, with which we
are now faced, is an exclusively Jewish state that wishes to
maintain illegal control of the territories against the will
of its native population. As I'm sure all would agree, this situation
has been untenable for some time, and will only grow worse unless
one of the other two options is pursued.
Here at home, I have prided myself on
being a champion for civil liberties and human rights. Over the
years, I have constantly maintained the view that changes in
government policy must be achieved from within the system. When
Mazen was denied his right to a trial and illegally detained,
our community formed coalitions, lobbied Congress, and met with
editorial boards and administration officials to express our
outrage at the use of secret evidence. By the end, we had made
it a national issue, garnering more than 130 supporters on a
bill in Congress to ban the use of secret evidence.
During the presidential race, the use
of secret evidence became a national issue when then Gov. George
Bush came out against this policy during the second debate, giving
him the support of Arab and Muslim voters.
Sept. 11 should not be used in order
to sacrifice this great tradition. In addition, the backlash
against the Arab-American and Muslim communities in the United
States in the aftermath of the horrible tragedy was wrong and
must be condemned. Similarly, to exploit the atmosphere of fear
and insecurity in order to silence me is also contrary to our
values.
Since 9/11 -- and indeed, long before
-- I have not said or done anything to justify the continuous
onslaught against me. This fight for academic freedom, free speech
and preservation of tenure is indeed a worthy struggle. I will
continue the struggle and I appreciate the support I received
from my family, friends and community, and the many professors,
students, unions and countless others. We have no choice but
to continue defending these rights. As Mark Twain once said,
"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority
it is time to pause and reflect."
Sami Al-Arian
is a computer engineering professor at the University of South
Florida who has been on forced paid leave for the past 11 months.
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