Ward Churchill Academic Misconduct Investigation - Reactions To The University of Colorado Investigation

Reactions To The University of Colorado Investigation

Some observers state that Churchill is innocent of the misconduct charges, and that the CU investigation was politically motivated by outrage against his 9/11 essay. A second category of observers either take no position on the issue of Churchill's alleged misconduct, or state that while Churchill is probably guilty of research misconduct, the circumstances surrounding CU’s investigation warrant leniency regarding sanctions against Churchill. Thomas Brown, a longtime Churchill critic, argues that while the investigation may have been politicized, Churchill’s alleged plagiarism is the central issue, and that sanctions are warranted.

A statement issued by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education agreed that while Churchill's freedom of speech was protected, freedom of expression did not excuse any academic misconduct and that Churchill's free speech protections should not insulate him from allegations of academic misconduct. Similarly, Eugene Volokh, writing in the Huffington Post, agreed with the University's assessment that, "public figures who choose to speak out on controversial matters of public concern naturally attract more controversy and attention to their background and work than scholars quietly writing about more esoteric matters that are not the subject of political debate." Volokh concluded, "That seems to me to be exactly what happened here. Unfortunately for Ward Churchill, it turns out that his scholarship couldn't bear the attention that his statements prompted." Others who have criticized Churchill with reference to the University of Colorado investigations include Alan Dershowitz, Jessica Corry and Peter Worthington

The American Civil Liberties Union expressed support for Churchill, stating that the "poisoned atmosphere in which this investigation was launched ... irretrievably tainted the process." Similarly, Hamid Dabashi, Richard Falk and Howard Zinn also wrote in support of Churchill citing academic freedom and freedom of expression issues.

The Colorado Conference of the American Association of University Professors issued a report on November 11, 2011, stating that "Because of the University of Colorado's indifference to the ideals of academic freedom ... the Colorado Conference of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) recommends that any faculty seeking employment accept a position at the University of Colorado only as a last resort." In response, a University of Colorado campus spokesperson said that the cases had no bearing on the issue of academic freedom, and were certainly not related to each other.