I just got an e-flyer for Islamophobia: The Ideological Campaign Against Muslims, by Stephen Sheehi — “Preface by Mumia Abu Jamal, Foreword by Ward Churchill.” Of course, I’m sure it does build credibility in some circles. One special surprise: Stephen Sheehi is “Associate Professor of Arabic and Arab Culture and Director of the Arabic Program at the University of South Carolina”; I would have hoped that his academic position would have made him reluctant to be associated with Churchill, given Churchill’s having been found guilty by an academic investigative committee of:
1. Falsification, as discussed in Allegations A, B, C, and D.
2. Fabrication, as discussed in Allegations C and D.
3. Plagiarism, as discussed in Allegations E and G.
4. Failure to comply with established standards regarding author names on publications, as discussed most fully in Allegation F but also in Allegations A, B, and D.
5. Serious deviation from accepted practices in reporting results from research, as discussed in Allegation D.
But I take it that Prof. Sheehi has a different view of Churchill’s behavior. (Note that the $1 jury verdict in Churchill’s favor seems likely based on a conclusion that the academic misconduct allegations against Churchill were correct — hence the lack of damages — but that the University actually fired Churchill at least in large part for his protected political advocacy; but misconduct by the university hardly cancels out the misconduct by Churchill.)