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Ward Churchill's Trial of the Century By: Rosemarie Jackowski This is not the first time in history that mob rule has taken the place of intelligent reflection. The earth is flat; the sun revolves around the earth; 9/11 occurred because they hate us for our freedoms. Those who disagree will be charged with Heresy! A modern day Inquisition has been in process. Professor Ward Churchill has been fired.
Professor Churchill has been under attack for a long time. His crime - he tried to chip away at the denial that many found comfort in. Some habits are hard to break. Many of us are born and bred to believe that we are the best. Our country has never done anything wrong. The USA has never committed a war crime. We do not torture. Just ask the Attorney General. Churchill is not alone in his current circumstance. His name will go down in history along with Galileo and others who have dared to challenge the conventional view. Now the trial of the century is about to begin. It has been more than 300 years since the Salem Witch Trials and more than 80 years since the Scopes Trial. Churchill is ready to fight back. He is on the offense. Go get'em, Ward. Many are with you. Will Churchill receive justice through a judicial process? No one knows. The judicial system in the United States often fails to achieve truth or justice. Has Churchill ever made an error in any of his writings? Maybe. A few years ago I planned to sponsor - as part of my activism- a contest. The purpose of the contest would be to get as many people as possible to read Howard Zinn's "A Peoples History of the United States". A monetary prize would be awarded to anyone who found a significant error of fact in the book. I had a brief conversation with Zinn about my idea one day when he was speaking at a college near Albany, NY. I asked him what he thought about the contest. I will never forget his answer. He said, "Of course there might be a mistake in the book." The point is this: even the most highly respected authors and historians might not achieve absolute infallibility. Ancient history is hazy. Any author should be judged by the whole body of his work. It would be helpful to also judge the Press by the same standard. The accuracy of all history textbooks that are currently in use in our schools should also be re-evaluated. Professor Churchill has been under attack for a long time. His crime - he tried to chip away at the denial that many found comfort in. Some habits are hard to break. Many of us are born and bred to believe that we are the best. Our country has never done anything wrong. The USA has never committed a war crime. We do not torture. Just ask the Attorney General. A thorough examination of the arguments that Churchill puts forward could enlighten many. The main thrust of his writings is far more accurate than the sanitized view of history which is normally taught in most schools. How many high school history textbooks contain a chapter or even a paragraph about the slaughter at No Gun Ri and other US crimes against humanity? How many textbooks give the history of lynching in the US? How many in the US are aware of the government policy as expressed by Madeline Albright. While being interviewed by Leslie Stahl, Albright stated that the death of 500,000 Iraqi children was worth it. Churchill is not alone in condemning a policy that results in the deaths of innocent children. Will Churchill's detractors take a good look at the vast body of his writings or will the critics continue to hone in on one emotionally charged word or phrase? Every word, sentence, and punctuation mark that Churchill has ever used has been up for scrutiny. That is a good thing. A fair examination of the works of Churchill will necessitate an equally grueling examination of the history of USA actions and policies from 1492 to the present day. The Court should allow a thorough examination of United States history. That will be a major victory. Shocking overt and covert actions of the US, that have been covered-up for decades, will finally be exposed. The national dialogue will be changed forever. The most heated criticism of Churchill is the result of his statement which basically said that 9/11 was Blowback. Churchill has been unfairly attacked on this issue by those who just don't "get it". The view that government policies have consequences did not originate with the Professor. When the word "Blowback" was first used, Churchill had not yet published any writings. It was 1954. He was seven years old. "Blowback" is a term introduced by the CIA because it was generally accepted that US foreign policy would eventually result in blowback. At that time the CIA was concerned about the effects of USA involvement in the overthrow of Mossadeq in Iran. In 2000, before the tragedy of 9/11, Chalmers Johnson published his book titled "Blowback". "Blowback" won an American Book Award in 2001. Most who follow US foreign policy knew that the American people would pay a price. The only surprise about 9/11 was the where and when. The "why" was well known and documented years before, but ignored by the media. Churchill's explanation of the "why" has offended and shocked only those who were not paying attention. Attorney David Lane is representing Churchill. Will the Galileo concept be used during the Trial? It is relevant - seems like history repeating itself. All eyes will be on the Trial of the Century. I'm placing my bet on the Professor.
Rosemarie Jackowski is an advocacy journalist living in the USA. She was arrested, tried, and convicted for her participation in a peaceful protest of the war. The conviction was appealed and overturned in the State Supreme Court. The government then announced plans to retry the case. Finally, after years of legal proceedings, all charges were dropped. She can be reached at: dissent[at]sover.net Articles by Rosemarie Jackowski at MWC News http://mwcnews.net/rosemarie-jackowski |
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