Provost Peter Lange told members of the Department of Cultural Anthropology Monday that they are prohibited from spending department funds on political advertisements like the anti-war ad that ran on page six of The Chronicle Monday.
In an e-mail to the faculty involved, Lange explained that it is against the University's responsibilities under the federal tax code for one of its divisions to pay for a political advertisement.
"The department has responded that they apologize and will take care of it," Lange said, adding that he expects some or all of the 39 faculty who signed the ad to contribute individually to its cost.
Associate Professor Anne Allison, chair of the cultural anthropology department and the first of the signers listed in the ad, declined to comment late Monday night. But Kathy Ewing, associate professor of cultural anthropology, said she and others would heed the provost's e-mail.
"I think that when we heard about it [Monday] we just said, 'Of course we will contribute to the kitty and have private donations for the ad,'" said Ewing, also director of the Center for South Asian Studies. "And I think that it's probably a matter of a lack of experience. There was nothing intended by it; we have a new chair."
The $312.90 half-page advertisement notes the group's strong disapproval of the war against Iraq.
"We wish to express our opposition to the U.S. bombing of Iraq, and affirm our solidarity with those students and student groups protesting the war," the text of the advertisement reads. "We consider this unilateral action by the U.S. government reckless, unjustifiable, and against the best interests of the international community, and urge the Duke community to find ways to engage in serious reflection and dialogue about this disturbing turn of events." The ad then lists 39 names of faculty members-some from the cultural anthropology department, but many from other departments in Arts and Sciences. It concludes: "The ad is sponsored by the Department of Cultural Anthropology."
Lange stressed that no law prohibits the 39 individual faculty members from buying an advertisement to express their anti-war sentiments; but he said it is not appropriate for a University department to buy the ad.
"They thought they could do this and so they did it," Lange said. "It wasn't done with any particular bravado; it was just an efficient way to accomplish what a great number of faculty [wanted to do]."
The advertisement came two days before all students may begin registering for summer classes and four days before seniors begin registration for next fall.
Ewing and Lange said they did not think the incident would impact students' interest in classes in the department, or that it is an indication of the philosophy of all faculty members in cultural anthropology.
"I have absolute confidence that the faculty members in that department would not allow their personal political views to get in the way they evaluated and taught students," Lange said.
The incident does have some recent precedent, albeit of a much different nature and on the other side of the political spectrum.
Two years ago, Gary Hull, a senior lecturing fellow in sociology and then-director of the Program on Values and Ethics in the Marketplace, posted two articles on his Duke website in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks - End States Who Sponsor Terrorism" and "Terrorism and Its Appeasement."
Administrators shut down the website, and only after public uproar was it reinstated, with a disclaimer that Hull's views did not reflect those of the University.
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