Tampa Bay Coalition for Justice and Peace
June 16, 2003

Tampa– On Saturday June 14, the American Associate of University Professors, a group influential in higher education condemned the University of South Florida for firing Dr. Sami Al-Arian.

Members of the association also asked an investigative committee to reconsider action when the group meets again next year, keeping the door open for a possible censure of the university. AAUP spokeswoman Ruth Flower told the Associated Press, “I think that the intention is… definitely to keep the case open.”

The Tampa Bay Coaltion for Justice and Peace commends the AAUP for condemning USF’s suppression of free speech and its continuous disregard for academic freedom.

Moreover, TBCJP maintains that censure is the most appropriate measure against a university president who has denied Dr. Al-Arian his right to due process and a board of trustees who’ve launched a politically-motived campaign to silence Dr. Al-Arian.

Dr. Al-Arian’s attorney Robert McKee said, “I’m very happy for what we got but I’m disappointed because censure wasn’t approved. It’s still a black cloud hanging over the university for another year.”

It is both shameful and disingenuous for USF officials to use the government’s weak and trumped-up charges against Dr. Al-Arian, which have yet to be cross-examined let alone proven in a court of law, as justification for their reprehensible actions.