• 

• May/June 2009

• Korea and Nebraska
  StratCom Comrades in Arms

• Taking an Economic ‘Wrong Turn’: How Our Chance to Build a Sustainable Economy Is Being Undermined

• Obama’s Changes in Military Policy Are Driven Less by Philosophy than by Economic Reality

• 

• April 2009

• We’re Never Getting
  Back to ‘Normal’

• Cut the Military Budget

• Catholic Workers Protest Omaha Archdiocese’s Support of StratCom

• Learning the Language
  of the Fields

• Still Pushing Booze on the Indians after All These Years

• 

• March 2009

• The Case for an Even Bolder Economic Stimulus

• IMMIGRATION Part III:
  It’s Time for a New Policy

• The Offensive Side of
  'Missile Defense'

• A Different Perspective
  on Whiteclay

• Mike Lux’s
  Progressive Revolution

• 

• February 2009

• IMMIGRATION Part II: A Brief History of U.S. Policy

• One China or Two?

• A Smash Hit

• 2009 Legislative Agenda

• NFP College Scholarship Contest

• 

• January 2009

• IMMIGRATION: Good Policy Takes More than Imagination

• World Opposes U.S. Space Weapons Stance

• ‘Yes We Can’ Close the School of Assassins!

• Paths to a New Energy Future

• 

• ARCHIVE

• 

Academic Freedom in the Age of Homeland Security

Patrick Jones, UNL Asst. Professor
History and Ethnic Studies

In March, the Nebraska Report featured an article by Dr. Waskar Ari, the promising Bolivian historian hired by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln two years ago, but who has thus far been barred from entering the country by the federal government.

To date, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has failed to act on the university’s H1-B employment visa application on behalf of Dr. Ari, citing unspecified “security checks” under the terrorrelated provisions of the USA PATRIOT ACT. Responding to these charges, Ari recently wrote, “I have never had any connection with terrorism, terrorist organizations, or organizations that support terrorism in any way, and I am adamantly opposed to terrorism and terrorists no matter what.” The case is troubling, given the broader trend of academic exclusion after 9/11, and has led some to speculate that it might actually be related to political and economic tensions between Bolivia’s President, Evo Morales, and the Bush Administration. Like President Morales, Dr. Ari, is a member of the Aymara indigenous group, which has been historically oppressed in Bolivia. In a passionate defense of Dr. Ari, the President of the American Historical Association, Dr. Barbara Weinstein, wrote, “Even in our post-9/11 world, it seems unthinkable that we have arrived at the point where scholars from nations or ethnic communities that criticize U.S. policies may be summarily barred from entering the United States or teaching at U.S. universities. Has the definition of ‘national security’ been stretched so far as to exclude anyone associated with any group that has manifested unhappiness with the U.S. role in world affairs?”

In a bold move, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln filed suit against the Department of Homeland Security on March 2, 2007, in an attempt to compel DHS to act on the university’s visa petition. The American Civil Liberties Union, which brought similar legal action on behalf of the prominent Swiss Islamic scholar, Tariq Ramadan, after the U.S. government revoked his visa to teach at the University of Notre Dame in 2004, is also tracking Ari’s case, along with a number of others across the country. The ACLU reports that many exclusions appear ideologically motivated and that academics are increasingly being interrogated about their political beliefs when they apply for visas. According to Michael Maggio, Ari’s lead attorney, “the First Amendment, academic freedom, and an unlawful approach to background checks for foreign academics are at the heart of the lawsuit.” The federal government has 60 days to respond to the complaint.

While the legal process advances, it is important for readers of the Nebraska Report to understand that this is ultimately a political issue. If Dr. Ari is to get a fair hearing and the legal suit is to be successful, the federal government needs to hear from concerned citizens. To that end, I want to encourage you to write to Secretrary Michael Chertoff at the Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Condoleezza Rice at the Department of State and Nebraska Senators Chuck Hagel and Ben Nelson. Please spread the word about Dr. Ari’s plight and encourage others to support his cause, as well.

This case raises disturbing questions about the free-flow of ideas and people in the post-9/11 era, questions that get at the heart of due process and human rights. This is happening right here on the edge of the Great Plains, not in some distant place. This is our fight. Join me and Nebraskans for Peace in standing up for Dr. Ari and academic freedom. If not now, when?

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