| WINSTON-SALEM, NC
- September 12 - Carolina teacher Elizabeth Ito has
appealed her firing from Forsyth Technical Community College, which came after
she made remarks critical of the conduct of the war in Iraq. Her firing, which
has been widely criticized by local anti-war activists and free speech
advocates, is seen as part of a larger crack-down on dissent and academic freedom. "It is clear that Elizabeth didn't lose her job because she expressed a personal opinion in the classroom," said Liz Seymour, a member of the Ito Defense
Coalition. "She lost her job because of the opinion she expressed."
On Friday, March 28, 2003 Elizabeth, a first-year English teacher at Forsyth Tech, spent ten minutes at the beginning of her business writing class voicing
her concerns about the war in Iraq. During this time the US military was
encountering much unanticipated resistance in its push toward Baghdad and the previous night's news had reported that 30,000 more troops were being called up,
a figure that by the next morning had risen to 120,000. Elizabeth wrote these
numbers on the board and asked the students what they would do if the
government had to start drafting. After class had ended two students complained to
Elizabeth's supervisor Susie Keener, Chair of the Department of
Humanities/Communication, that Elizabeth had criticized the war in class.
The following Monday morning Susie Keener and John Slade, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, met with Elizabeth for over two hours to discuss the
incident. At the end of the meeting Dean Slade asked Elizabeth to promise not
to raise the topic of the war again in class. Elizabeth said that she had no
intention of revisiting the subject but that she was unwilling to bind herself
to a promise. Later that week Dean Slade presented Elizabeth with a
disciplinary letter that concluded with the statement "this matter is resolved."
Elizabeth, who had been commended for her teaching in a series of official
reviews throughout the year did not, in fact, discuss the war again in class.
Nonetheless, on May 15 she received a certified letter at her home informing her that Forsyth Tech no longer needed her services. In the weeks following her dismissal Elizabeth's students spoke out on her behalf-even one of the
students who originally complained to the Forsyth Tech administration told Michelle
Johnson a reporter for the Winston-Salem Journal, that he did not think
Elizabeth should have been fired for her remarks.
Ito's firing has received widespread press attention in North Carolina
including articles in the Winston-Salem Journa, the Durham Herald-Sun. the
Greensboro News & Record, and the Carolina Peacemaker. A story was also broadcast on the local NPR affiliate. "This is not just about me or about my job," said
Ito. "It's about something very disturbing that is happening all over the
country. I want people to understand that if it could happen hee it could happen
anywhere."
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