An Open Letter to Dr. McClain at Duke by John Armor

Guest Commentary

Folks,

I am, of course, upset with the behavior of many members of the Duke
faculty in condemning in advance and without evidence, the Duke
lacrosse
players who have now been cleared.  Of the 88 faculty who are the
serious offenders, this woman is the worst of the lot.  Hence this
letter to her.

John


Paula McClain, Professional Black Person

An Open Letter to Dr. McClain at Duke:

[BB 545, 5 May 2007, 706 words]

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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