UIUCs Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies had invited three lawyers to participate in a small symposium on Transitional Justice for Dec 4th. These lawyers sent a letter declining the invitation in support of the Salaita case. Below is the letter. New York and New Orleans November 1st, 2014 Ms. Angelina Cotler Associate Director Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign Ms. Anita Kaiser Assistant Director Women and Gender in Global Perspectives Program University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign Dear Ms. Cotler and Ms. Kaiser: We were honored and excited, a couple of months ago, when your institution invited us to participate on a panel on transitional justice, to be held on December 4th of this year, at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (UIUC). We commend you for your interest to engage students and faculty in a discussion on transitional justice, a paradigm in rapid expansion, at the intersection of human rights, political science and ethics. Our enthusiasm to participate led us to accept your kind invitation. However, in the intervening time, we have become aware of the serious situation involving UIUC and Professor Steven Salaita. According to several credible sources, UIUC refused to honor an offer of tenure to Prof. Salaita in retaliation for actions of public speech on the crisis in Gaza, an issue of international significance that raises serious humanitarian and human rights concerns. In response to UIUC’s actions, and in defense of academic freedom and freedom of expression, a boycott has been called by hundreds of scholars, calling on UIUC to reverse its course. We believe we cannot fail to honor this measure, and consequently, we regrettably have to cancel our participation in the December 4th event. A subject like transitional justice, drawing from reflection on experiences of accountability and impunity around the world, necessitates full freedom to be discussed. Situations inevitably inviting controversy, like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and many others, can plausibly emerge in a discussion about international justice, truth or reparations. It would be difficult to engage in an open, productive discussion on transitional justice under the uncomfortable shadow of censorship. Our honoring the boycott should in no way reflect badly on the outstanding academic work you and your colleagues conduct. We regret any complication created by this cancellation, and we sincerely wish that it will turn out to be just a postponement, once UIUC corrects its actions in the case of Prof. Salaita. We remain interested in productive dialogue with your colleagues and students. We will be open to discussing other forms to hold discussions on transitional justice that do not violate the measures in defense of academic freedom mentioned above. Sincerely, Rebecca Atencio Tulane University Eduardo González New School University Peter Rosenblum Bard College
Posted on: Mon, 03 Nov 2014 17:06:40 +0000
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