1/27/2008 8:55:00 PM
By Republished from The Wanderer -Thomas F. Roeser
CHICAGO-I sat down not long ago with a man I had never met before but about whom I had read much, Thomas E. Klocek. He is a fired adjunct professor at DePaul's School of New Learning, a department specializing in instructing older students, age 26 and above. Tom Klocek is a daily communicant, a man of soft-spoken, reflective demeanor and a thorough scholar. He is an expert on Slavic languages and literature, particularly Russian and old Slavic. He is pursuing a doctorate at the University of Chicago, his thesis entitled "Logos and its Impact on the Development of Medieval Slavic Culture." He taught at DePaul part-time for 15 years and has been a highly respected professor.
Klocek's story-agreed to on most points by both sides-goes like this. On the afternoon of Sept. 14, 2004 he strolled into a hall where student organizations were displaying their wares and soliciting memberships. He happened upon a both run by "Students for Justice in Palestine" and "United Muslims Moving Ahead." Both are pro-Palestinian. A man of moderate views, Klocek was struck with the charge in the literature that Israel should cede its entire territory to the Palestinians under the theory of so-called "right of return."
As both sides agree, Klocek began the conversation with this statement: "You know, there's more than one perspective in the Middle East conflict." In response a student compared the Israeli treatment of Palestinians to the atrocities committed against Jews by Hitler and the Nazis.
At this point, recollections differ. The students say Klocek interrupted ands used profanity. Klocek says he did not interrupt-but the teacher in him spurred him to ask questions. Quickly he was surrounded by a groiup of angry students.
Klocek said mildly that the name "Palestinian" did not exist historically; they were called Arabs and that the name Palestinian was a 20th century construct. This was an historical reference that could be challenged or not as would be typical in a university.
One student described herself as Palestinian. Klocek: "She got up from the table and said, `You know, the Palestinians are being treated by the Israelies the same way Hitler treated the Jews.' I took umbrage. I told her that was an absolute, scurrilous statement, an absolute lie. I said I believe the Israeli armed forces have exercised very careful restraint in their responses to what has been almost daily suicide bombings. There is a big difference between Israelis targeting a terrorist and someone strapped with bombs going in a cafe or seder and blowing up people."
Now more diversion in their stories. The students say they tried to reason with Klocek but he wasn't interested. He says he was interested in hearing their views since considering alternative views has been his work. They say he interrupted them and used profanity; he says he used no profanity.
They say he referred to the Palestinians as "those people." He is not sure whether or not he did but "those people" is a phrase not regularly assumed to constitute derogation unless accompanied by descriptions. They say he said, "There is no such thing as a moderate Muslim; you are all fanatics!" He strenuously denies this.
The students say they became disturbed by his vehemence and called campus security. He was escorted from the building. But he had one more point to be made. He returned and made it. Then, surrounded by eight students, Klocek decided he had had enough. He gave (he says) a hand gesture, fingers brushing his jaw, a New Jersey Italianate form of subject dismissal . It has been recently popularized by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia who on the bench signifies irresolution of argument between disputing parties with the gesture meaning "so let us move on." Or as Klocek describes it, "I'm finished. I'm out of here."
But the students interpreted it as giving them "the finger"-a semi-obscene gesture with disreputable ramifications which Klocek denies he did. The pro-Palestinian students circulated an email university-wide calling for Klocek to be punished.
He was hailed into the office of the New School Dean, Susanne Dumbleton (no kidding: that's her name). She said the report of his behavior violated the university's Faculty Code of conduct. But Klocek pointed out, he was not in a classroom and was not expressing his views in connection with a course he was teaching. Dean Dumbleton urged him to apologize to the students. He declined.
Then on Sept. 24, 2004 he received notice from Dumbleton that he was being suspended with pay and full benefits due to complaints about the incident. The summary decision by Dumbleton was made because he did not apologize. His suspension told Klocek that the university had sided with the students.
This was not the first brush with academic freedom of inquiry at DePaul. Only after an extensive spotlight was turned on it, did DePaul refuse tenure as political science professor to one Norman Finkelstein for the 2007 -08 academic year who had questioned Jewish exploitation of the Holocaust. Then only after Alan Dershowitz entered the fray, making it a national cause celebre and even then DePaul praised Finkelstein as "a prolific scholar and outstanding teacher." Prof. Ward Churchill of the University of Colorado had been invited to speak to students on a paying basis; hje is noted for saying that the victims of 9/11 had it coming. Rebukes were ignored as the university took the side of the most virulent activists.
But DePaul has not been evenhanded. When conservative students put on an "affirmative action" bake sale, charging white males more for brownies than they charged minorities and women-making the case against any kind of discrimination on the basis of race or gender-they were first charged with racism by the university which took a long time to untangle. Seemingly no amount of criticism from those opposed to so-called "political correctness" means much at DePaul.
And evidently it doesn't mean much to longtime professor Tom Klocek who was punished because he stirred the ire of a vehement, politically adept left-wing minority.
To continue: Dean Dumbleton met with the angry Palestinian students. She told Klocek that he would have to submit an apology to the students-clear evidence that Dumbleton, who had not observed the incident, agreed with the Palestinian students. Further, she added, if he wished to continue teaching at DePaul in the future his classes would have to be monitored to ascertain that he was not offending students with his views.
Klocek objected saying that this constituted a violation of his academic freedom. He tried to get a formal hearing at DePaul. Hearing denied. The student newspaper, "The DePaulia," contacted Dumbleton. She gave an interview. Unsurprisingly, the newspaper concentrated on the views of Dumbleton and the student critics of Klocek and gave no credence to Klocek. Moreover, they quoted Dumbleton as saying that Klocek's "medical history" may have had something to do with his anger. He says it didn't-but she violated the privacy of his personnel file.
Each time Klocek met with the school, it was mandated that he would have to apologize. Apologize for what? DePaul: for what the students said he said. Klocek refused.
Then he sued DePaul for defamation of character and breach of contract, denial of his academic freedom and having improperly disclosed private medical information.
This made sure Tom Klocek got at least one thing out of the imbroglio; a hearing. It wasn't a university hearing but a circuit court hearing. Attending was the university president, Fr. Dennis Holtschneider, CM, a man as unfamiliar to most of DePaul as to Klocek and one famous for not responding to media questions. In all, he has refused my calls for interviews many times (once when I happened on him in person he accepted but our meeting is yet to be held). When the hearing concluded, Holtschneider looked at his watch and exclaimed brightly, overheard by the judge, Klocek his lawyer and all others: "Ah, now I can go to my health club."
One charge brought by Klocek was dismissed by the circuit court of Cook county: wrongful termination-but the defamation suit continues. After a brief flurry in the Chicago press and a story in "National Review," the Klocek-DePaul issue has died. Had Klocek been denied his teaching job because he had expressed left-wing or anti-American views or had been accused of infuriating any right-wing student group, you can bet the local media would be all over the issue. As it is, only Chicago's alternative newspaper-"The Chicago Daily Observer" which I edit-gave him coverage.
In his Op Ed for "The Observer," writer Daniel Kelleyo, a lawyer and graduate of DePaul law, who has studied the case closely says the news blackout and silence from DePaul is understandable. "Reason" the more the Klocek case is known, the worse DePaul looks." And then hje makes the most damning statement of all:
"Dean Dumbleton treats this injustice not unlike injustice is treated in the Islamic world where diversity is not encouraged."
Academic freedom? When invoked by the Left, it has real staying power. When appealed to by anyone else, it evokes a big liberal yawn. Especially in Chicago Catholic circles. DePaul constitutes the Cook county. Its board, largely lay, is peopled with clout heavy Democratic party operatives with Irish names, big givers to party and church. In that order.
There is much more to the DePaul story. The next artifle will tell about its fervor for gay studies. Even a conference called "Queering the Church." So far, the archdiocese has not raised a finger to strip Catholic identity from the abjectly school even though the right to do so lies completely within the jurisdiction of the archbishop of Chicago, Francis Cardinal George. But wouldn't be politic. You know how it is. Don't hold your breath waiting for Cardinal George to do anything about it.
And as for going direct to Rome? People tried that a few years ago. The Vatican had a top official, a top ranking archbishop, Michael Miller, with the title "secretary to the Congregation for Catholic Education." His job was to see that Catholic education was revitalized.
No letters of protest about DePaul were ever answered by Archbishop Miller. Since being at the Vatican where he didn't answer his mail, Miller was promoted . But you would assume that, wouldn't you? He is coadjutor archbishop of Vancouver.
The flurry of non-activity by Rome by the supposed custodian of Catholic education leads credence to the story concerning Pope John XXIII. When asked how many people work at the Vatican, he reportedly answered: "About half."
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