Campus Watch in the Media

Ask Your Senator to Defend Academic Freedom

CAIR
February 13, 2004

http://www.campus-watch.org/article/id/1003

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 2/13/04) - CAIR is urging American Muslims and other people who value academic freedom to contact their senators, particularly members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, to express opposition to the creation of an International Studies Advisory Board that could be part of the Senate counterpart to H.R. 3077, the Education Reauthorization Act now being drafted by the HELP Committee.

Section 633 of the Education Reauthorization Act calls for the creation of an advisory board consisting of at least two appointees that representational security agencies overseeing curricula, course materials and the recruitment of faculty that accept federal government money for international studies. While Asian, African, European, and Latin American area studies programs will be affected, Middle Eastern studies programs are the real target of the advisory board.

The advisory board could serve to stifle academic freedom by suppressing any views that are not viewed as supportive of Israel and in line with Muslim-bashers like Daniel Pipes, who has been actively pushing for the oversight board.

Pipes faced a storm of criticism when he launched Campus Watch, a web site that included "dossiers" on professors and academic institutions thought to be too critical of Israel or too sympathetic to Islam and Muslims.

In a January 13th Washington Post article, Pipes claimed "Middle East studies have not served us well" and that the board will serve to
"....supervise the distribution of government funds…..of what he considers to be the radical Middle East studies lobby centered in universities such as Columbia, Georgetown and the University of Chicago."

H.R. 3077 passed the House floor with little notice of academic freedom concerns.

"At a time when Congress is pushing for democracy and academic freedom in the Middle East, it is critical that we uphold these values in our own universities," said CAIR Governmental Affairs Coordinator Hasan Mansori.

ACTION REQUESTED: (As always, be POLITE and RESPECTFUL.)

1) Contact the Chairman of the HELP Committee today and ask that section 633, which creates the advisory board, be removed from H.R. 3077 in the Senate bill. Send copies of correspondence to the other members of the committee.

CONTACT:

Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH)
Chairman
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510-6300
TEL: (202) 224-5375, Majority Staff: (202) 224-6770, Minority Staff:
(202)224-0767 FAX: (202) 228-5044
E-MAIL: greggstaff@labor.senate.gov

2) Contact the committee member who represents your state and ask that
section 633 be removed from H.R. 3077 in the Senate bill. Send copies of correspondence to the other members of the committee.

LIST OF OTHER COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
http://health.senate.gov/committee_members.html

Ranking Member: Edward Kennedy (MA)
202-224-4543 Phone
202-224-2417 Fax

Republicans:

Bill Frist (TN)
202-224-3344 Phone
202-228-1264 Fax

Mike Enzi (WY)
202-224-3424 Phone
202-228-0359 Fax

Lamar Alexander (TN)
202-224-4944 Phone
202-228-3398 Fax

Christopher Bond (MO)
202-224-5721 Phone
202-224-8149 Fax

Mike DeWine (OH)
202-224-2315 Phone
202-224-6519 Fax

Pat Roberts (KS)
202-224-4774 Phone
202-224-3514 Fax

Jeff Sessions (AL)
202-224-4124 Phone
202-224-3149 Fax

John Ensign (NV)
202-224-6244 Phone
202-228-2193 Fax

Lindsey Graham (SC)
202-224-5972 Phone
202-224-1189 Fax

John Warner (VA)
202-224-2023 Phone
202-224-6295 Fax

Democrats:

Christopher Dodd (CT)
202-224-2823 Phone
202-224-1083 Fax

Tom Harkin (IA)
202-224-3254 Phone
202-224-9369 Fax

Barbara Mikulski (MD)
202-224-4654 Phone
202-224-8858 Fax

Patty Murray (WA)
202-224-2621 Phone
202-224-0238 Fax

Jeff Bingaman (NM)
202-224-5521 Phone
202-224-2852 Fax

Jack Reed (RI)
202-224-4642 Phone
202-224-4680 Fax

John Edwards (NC)
202-224-3154 Phone
202-228-1374 Fax

Hillary Clinton (NY)
202-224-4451 Phone
202-228-0282 Fax

Independent: James Jeffords (VT)
202-224-5141 Phone
202-228-0776 Fax

Contact Information for the committee:

428 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510-6300
(202) 224-5375 - voice
(202) 228-5044 - Fax

Majority Staff #: (202) 224-6770
Minority Staff #: (202) 224-0767

Note: Postings in "Campus Watch in the Media" do not necessarily reflect the views of Campus Watch.

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