The Academic Left, again

The Churchill imbroglio continues unabated at CU. The Denver Post reports that Churchill will not lose his tenure, despite pressure on the Board of Trustees to strip him of it. The article carries links to other related articles that may be of interest. Read it here.

In a related story, the Post also reports that the Professor is not, as he has claimed, a member of the Keetoowah Cherokees, and raises questions about his military service record. Read it here. As more information comes out about him, it appears that the Professor over the past several years has been constructing a personal identity that is highly questionable.

Another article, this one in the Rocky Mountain News, provides an interesting insight into this process. Titled "Prof's Indian roots disputed" it cites representatives of the Keetoowah tribe who affirm that Churchill is not a member and that his Indian identity is fraudulent. It then goes on to interview a Montana journalist, herself an Indian and former student of Churchill's, who had previously done an article on him. She expressed indignation that the director of the Indian Studies program was not himself an Indian. There apparently had been a whispering campaign on the Colorado campus to that effect and Professor Churchill seems to have felt the need to establish or create an Indian identity in order to get some street cred and possibly retain his academic post.

We have seen other cases in recent years of academics misrepresenting and romanticizing their personal history to colleagues, students, and the public. Is this a trend and what does it say about those of us who follow the academic professions? Are we just wannabes who need to get a life, or has the spread of identity politics and minority set asides forced us to manufacture and market our personal histories in order to advance professionally? I suspect a bit of both.

Several years ago, I believe it was in Slate, Andrew Sullivan wrote a brilliant article in which he deplored the rise of identity politics and the proliferation of what he called "azzas." You know of whom I speak -- those who preface their statements by saying "as a [insert victimized group] I would like to express...." The Churchill affair is emerging as a prime example of where the azza trail leads. It is the road to madness.