Less than Half of Faculty Votes In Favor of Resolution, Full Text Below

The resolution passed with 59 ayes, 9 nays, and 6 abstentions. Over 60 professors didn't show up, which if you think about it is a vote all on its own.

It was by secret ballot so we don't know who voted how. It failed to be sent to the Board of Trustees by unanimous consent. Afterward Dean Hess paid to take all of the professors to lunch at Collins.

Only in at a university would a man who believes there is a "Zionist-crusader plot" behind America's Middle East policy and who has called for Israelis to be boycotted from American universities be supported on the grounds of "diversity." A man who signed a petition saying that he supporter Hezbollah receives the "support" of Claremont McKenna. Dean Hess refused to even consider the letter I sent out or to have me address the faculty.

Dear voting members of the faculty:

 

Attached are the minutes from the faculty meeting held yesterday. 

 

Claremont McKenna College

 

Faculty Meeting

March 1, 2011

M I N U T E S

 

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 11:03 a.m., Dean Hess presiding.

 

Voting Members Present

Professors Aitel, Aksoy, Antecol, Appel, Ascher, Batta, Bessette, Bilger, blitz, Blomberg, Bradley, G., Broussard, Busch, Camp, cook, Davis, Edwalds-Gilbert,, Elliott, Espinosa, Faggen, Ferree, Frangieh, Frykman, Fucaloro, Fukshansky, Ganguly, Geismer, Gilbert, Haley, Hallberg, Hamburg, Hansen, Huber, Humes, Hurley, Kanaya, Kesler, Kind, Kincaid, Krauss, Kreines, Kumar, Lobis, Locke, Lofgren, Magilke, Massoud, Michon, Miller, Morrison, O’Neill, Pei, Petropoulos, Rajczi, Raviv, Rentz, Riggio, Rosenbaum, Rosett, Selig, Shelton, M, Shields, skinner, Smith, Sutton, Taw, Taylor, Thomas, Vega-Duran, Velazco, Warner, and Wright.  Pres. Gann, Dean Hess, Ms. Morgan.

 

Voting Members Absent

Professors Arndt, Barnea, Bjerk, Bjornlie (Lv AY), Black, Bradley, A. (Lv AY), Burdekin, Burton, Calichman, Charlop, Chase (Lv AY), Cody, Coleman, Conger, Costanzo, Cronqvist, Evans, Farrell, Filson, German, Gould, Graves, Halpern, Helland, Higdon, Hughson (Lv S 11), Hwang, Kang, Keil, Kim, Lee, A., Lee, C., Levin, Lonzo, Lynch, Martin (Lv S 11), Meulbroek, Milton, Morhardt, Murphy (Lv AY), Nadon, Nelson, Nichols, Obdrzalek (Lv AY), Ozbeklik (Lv AY), Park (Lv AY), Pitney, Puchner, Reed (Lv S 11), Reimer, Rossum (Lv S 11), Scalminini, Shelton, C., Spalding (Lv AY), Valenza, Walsh, Weidenmier, Willett, Yoo (Lv AY),Yoon, and Yu.

 

Approval of Motion 

It was MSC (Hess/Kind) to move into executive session.  All non-voting members of the faculty were asked to leave the venue.  Dean Hess asked Elizabeth Morgan, Registrar to take notes and to remind the faculty that the discussion in an executive session is confidential.

 

It was MS (Camp/Humes) to bring the motion (listed below) from the meeting held on February 25, 2011 forward.  A vote taken by secret ballot was in effect.  

Claremont McKenna College has a long and respected tradition of academic freedom and respect for diverse intellectual viewpoints.  This tradition is reflected in the College's 2002 Strategic Plan, which evidenced a commitment to hiring faculty members "who represent a broad spectrum of political and academic philosophies."  Moreover, it is reaffirmed in the College's Diversity Statement, passed by the Faculty and the Board of Trustees in 2007.  According to this statement, which defines diversity broadly as including "race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion and cultures, geographic and national origin (both U.S. and international), socio-economics, life experiences, and intellectual viewpoints," CMC should continue to "recruit a faculty of increased balance and diversity."

It is on the basis of this tradition that we, the CMC faculty, issue this statement of support for our colleague Bassam Frangieh.  We affirm academic freedom for all faculty and students at CMC.

 

The final tally was:

                59 ayes

                9 nays

                6 abstentions

 

It was MSC-Unanimous (Kind/    ) that the vote by shared with the members of the Board of Trustees.

 

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 11:30 a.m.  Dean Hess invited all faculty members who participated in the vote to enjoy a lunch in Collins Dining Hall at his expense.

 

 

Cindi Guimond

Associate Director of Academic Affairs

Claremont McKenna College

500 E. Ninth Street  Bauer Center

Claremont, CA  91711-6400

909.621.8117

cindi.guimond@cmc.edu

 

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Philip Weiss, Well Known Anti-Israel Blogger Attacks Me, Lies About Visiting Hospital Ruins

 Philip Weiss -- "I've been to Gaza. I saw the ruins of the gene sequencing building at the Islamic University and of Al Quds Hospital."

How do you see the ruins  of a building that isn't ruined? And spent a total of three to five days out of commission because of ruptured water pipes?

Those are some questions I ask in all seriousness to Philip Weiss who runs a well-known anti-Israel blog "Mondoweiss". Philip went after my work on March 1. Weiss, a self-described "anti-Zionist," goes after me, but leaves some important details out.

I've applied to comment on his site -- call me a glutton for punishment -- but haven't heard back yet. I thought I'd use this space to explain how it distorts what I said and how I said. For starters, there's the title, "Dershowitz rides shotgun for student attacking Palestinian scholar and his wife in California." 

1. Professor Dershowitz read the material I had translated and we talked about it. No more, no less. When I was younger I worked for him and have written about him on this site and elsewhere. I consider him a friend as well as a mentor, though we often disagree, which was part of the reason I asked him to look at the material I sent him.

2. I'm not "attacking" anyone. I am using statements made by them in Arabic and in English and drawing it to the attention of the community. If Mondoweiss were credible and not headed by two anti-Israel zealots, it would mention that Professor Frangieh's wife, Aleta Wenger, also works for the college as an "executive director."

Moving along, the author accuses me of omissions and says that he visited the Hamas-linked Islamic University of Gaza which he says had been bombed by Israel. He neglects to mention that IUG was used to store dozens of rocket-propelled grenade launches, rockets, and assault rifles and thousands of bullets (this material was found by Fatah) or that Israeli intelligence alleged the university was being used to elongate the range of Qassam missiles. 

He next says he saw the "ruins of al Quds Hospital." Oh really? Then how does he explain this statement from the International Committee of the Red Cross about the hospital after the alleged attack?

Repair work at Al-Quds Hospital, which is run by the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), is under way after a quick assessment jointly carried out with ICRC staff. Water pipes supplying the facility were badly damaged by the shelling. Hospital services are expected to be back to normal in three to five days. The PRCS warehouse, which was also shelled on Thursday, was reduced to ashes. Very substantial stocks of relief goods were destroyed. (Jan. 17, 2009, Gaza: Civilians continue to suffer despite hopes for imminent cease-fire)

CAMERA has done excellent work showing that the alleged hospital was never bombed or shelled. And they have photographic proof.

Next, he notes that a large chunk of government professors support me and then writes, "I wonder how many of them know the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict and the role it is now playing in American politics..."

You mean the Joooz control it, too? Say, have you been talking with Frangieh? He, after all, believes a "Zionist-crusader" plot is behind America's Middle East policy. I noticed that Weiss left that part out. I wonder why...