"Refined white supremacy in a UCI Lecturer's blog comments"

UPDATE #4 HERE.

UPDATE #2 HERE.

UPDATE #1 HERE.

That is the title of the letter "The Ghost of Adolph Rupp" sent to members of the UCI community.  Seems I am now a white supremacist. That said, as someone who writes and comments under his own name, I'm not particularly worried.  I comported myself on that thread as I always do.  For the record:

I am not a white supremacist, nor am I an enabler of white supremacy.  I am interested in the historical and rhetorical context of race in American culture.  (I've taught two courses on the subject.)  And I am interested in the context of online rhetoric.  This particular thread fascinated me because it intersects with many of my scholarly interests. 

But it will probably be the last time I attempt a discussion of these interests online, because you never know when the person across from you will decide it's time to notify your superiors that they have a white supremacist among them.  (Even though they don't.) 

Although it will cause me personal inconvenience, I do hope the people who received this email take it seriously.  Accusations of hate-speech and race-based discrimination should be investigated, so that when the complaints are legitimate they can be dealt with accordingly.  Just because someone took the time to craft an inaccurate, slanderous letter painting me as white supremacist does not mean that all such letters will be inaccurate and slanderous.

Here is the text of his letter:

"Refined white supremacy in a UCI Lecturer's blog comments"

The UCI lecturer's name is Scott Eric Kaufman.

http://www.ags.uci.edu/~skaufman/contact.html 

I informed Mr. Kaufman yesterday that I would be contacting UCI and I invited him to suggest names of people who he wanted included. Mr. Kaufman declined to respond, but he is copied on this email.

Over the course of several days, Mr. Kaufman was vigorous in his defense that it was appropriate that ABC affiliate post an excerpt of this with a link:

"Death of A House Negro
First Hogzilla II, now this?

Not to convert this place into the Dead Meat Buffet but an enormous amount of meat died this weekend and we’re all the better for it. It goes without saying that the term “house negro” gets bandied about with great frequency against anyone of seemingly African descent when they are on the Right. Be you Clarence Thomas, Condoleeza Rice, Michael Steele, or J.C. Watts, you can expect a Harry Belafonte, a Danny Glover, or yes - even a Steve Gilliard to call you out for being the race traitor that you are. The sell-out, Oreo cookies who do Whitey’s bidding and put a black face on racist policies that would otherwise be rightly called out for what they are. Uncle Thomas and Aunt Thomasinas alike.

But really, who is doing whose bidding in those situations? Can Howard Dean call Condoleeza his “do right answer mammy who be smart”? Can James Carville call out Clarence for collard greens?

Which brings us to today’s marquee morbidity. The tragic, untimely death of Donk House Negro and all around bigot Steve Gilliard. Who knew that boiling bacon grease in a spoon and mainlining it into the neck vein was bad for your health?

Most people will remember him as the happy-go-lucky poster of this photo of Michael Steele:

 

How to win a seat at the Democrat’s table.

The rest won’t remember him at all. The way it should be.

Naturally, The Left is deeply saddened that they need to find someone else who is not afraid to breakout the MS Paint and draw big lips and watermelons on black Republicans because they believe in individual responsibility or *gasp* lowering taxes.

It won’t be hard to find a replacement for Gilliard. Just scrape the bottom of the barrel like you usually do."

 

The New York Times had a different opinion of Mr. Gilliard http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/06/us/06gilliard.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Mr. Kaufman reserved most of his attacks for a blogger, patiotboy, who had succinctly summarized the serious problems with an ABC affiliate hosting white supremacist language that was explicity intended to inflict injury and humiliation:

patriotboy said,

on June 5th, 2007 at 10:09 pm

Brittney: The thing about blogging is that it levels the playing field. Everyone has a voice. Just because I disagree with that voice, doesn’t mean it gets ignored. Not here, anyway.

Some of those voices belong to freaking idiots. You aren’t required to repost every bleating that comes out of the Nashville area, and you don’t. Why did you decide to post this one? How did it make the cut? [...]

patriotboy said,

on June 6th, 2007 at 2:20 am

And Lynnster, Smantix isn’t working for an affiliate of a national television network. I have no hope of changing his behavior."

 

Mr. Kaufman launched his support of white supremacist language on an ABC affiliate in his comments in a Thursday 7 June 2007 thread at patriotboy's blog. Patriotboy titled this thread: "Getting Serious for a Moment." http://www.patriotboy.blogspot.com/

Mr. Kaufman commented under the pseudonym "SEK."  Mr. Kaufman buttressed his enabling of white supremacist language by identifying himself as an "academic."  Mr. Kaufman frequently invited readers to his web site. His site unambiguoulsy identifies him as a UCI lecturer.  Mr. Kaufman repeatedly criticized all who disagreed with him, because "we" did not properly understand the "context" of white supremacist language posted on an ABC affiliate's blog. Mr. Kaufman ignored numerous reminders that ABC and its affiliates transmit over publicly owned airwaves. Mr. Kaufman ignored reminders of Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction," and Don Imus' characterizations of the Rutgers' Women's Basketball team. If Mr. Kaufman had not been so completely dismissive of so many who tried to point out that it was he, who was missing the wider "context," I never would have felt compelled to contact so many at UCI. Mr. Kaufman refuses to acknowledge that he has inserted himself in the "context" of other acamedicians who have enabled white supremacy, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Heidegger

. 

Mr. Kaufman assumes a middle ground with respect to the transmission of white supremacist language that does not exist. He is either actively educating against the massive ignorance that undergirds all "white supremacy," or he is enabling tolerance of it.  It's a zero-sum game and I think I am being kind to Mr. Kaufman, a Ph.D. graduate student, by referring to him only as an enabler.

Dr. Quanbeck, among other things, I am requesting that you (and others copied on this) consider that Mr. Kaufman has already initiated a process which will pull UCI in his "context." That's why I copied UCI's Development Office. I doubt that they are anxious to hear Mr. Kaufman's name on a fundraising call. I doubt Mr. Kaufman considered their "context" when he lobbied so aggressively in favor of posting white supremacist language on an ABC affiliates's website. 

I have also copied Congresswoman Maxine Waters' Chief of Staff, Mikael Moore. I am sorry to admit that I was largely ignorant of what a rare gift Congresswoman Waters is to our great nation, until I began reading Jane Hamsher's blog, FireDogLake. I have also faxed a copy of this email to Alice A. Huffman, the President of the California Office of the NAACP. I have also copied the California Universities Consortium, because they are committed to advancing diversity in California education. I am inviting everyone copied on this to share their assessment of Mr. Kaufman's understanding of "context" with Mr. Kaufman. It is my sincere hope that this "sharing" takes place  individually and institutionally.

I have also copied UCI's student newspaper. I hope they see fit to report on Mr. Kaufman's advocacy for white supremacist language displayed on an ABC affiliate. Another issue is that Mr. Kaufman appears to have a lot of time available for blogging. I suspect that a large portion of Mr. Kaufman's funding comes directly from the taxpayers.  I think a very wide spectrum of UCI students will be very interested in his understanding of "context."  I raised issues very similar to these with Mr. Kaufman on the thread and he repeatedly and explicity welcomed them.   

I also copied "Ethics at UCI."

Below, I have quoted some of Mr. Kaufman's routinely banal comments, but I would urge everyone to read his comments in their entirety. Bold is mine:

"I'm interested in this affair for other, call them "academic" reasons." [...]

"Yes, random people can read it; however, random people should do their due diligence, as it is incumbent upon them to understand a statement before responding to it. (And yes, context is a vital part of understanding.)"

I wrote this to Mr. Kaufman: "You're enabling an incredibly vile example of refined white supremacy."

He responded: "...Just because the context is invisible to you does not mean that white supremacy has been enabled." [...]

Mr. Kaufman is also sickeningly quick to cast himself as the victim of "bigotry:"

"And is you bringing up that I'm from the South an attempt to score points with the members of this crowd who believe the citizens of Louisiana are sub-human dreck? What's with the odd bigotry against Southerners here?" [...]

Here Mr. Kaufman criticizes me for not being more tolerant of an ABC affiliate posting and linking white supremacist language.  

"I think I've made my position clear here from the beginning. In fact, before I was drawn into this idiotic pissing context with Ghost, I stated precisely what horses I had in the race. I have no position here to nuance, or to shift from, other than the simple fact that there was a miscommunication in context. The General admits as much. Why you can't let it go, Ghost, is beyond me." [...]

This was Mr. Kaufman's first response after I informed him that I would be sharing his comments with UCI.

"And why, exactly, are you going to do this? Have I engaged in any sort of harassment? Have I in any way, shape, or form endorsed Smantix's vile obituary? As I stated from the beginning, I have an interest how online interactions are framed. People in my department know that. People at the university know that. You can re-inform them of it if you'd like."

Later, he wrote this:

"You're going to inform my institution that I'm interested in the context of online interactions? They already know that. I presented on this very topic at the largest academic conference for English professors a mere six months ago. Last month, I participated in a roundtable on the same at UC Davis. People already know I'm interested in the context of online interactions. I'm confused as to what you think you'd accomplish here. [...]

So what you intend, then, is to re-inform people in my department of what they already know? You can see why I'm confused." [...]

That said, I find the threat childish, but if you really want to follow through with it, I can't stop you. I'm sure people in my department will take the word of a dead basketball coach very, very seriously. (Or wait, will you drop the veil of pseudonymity and complain under your own name? If you do, I'll take the high ground and not reveal your identity. I'm no tattler.)

Bold is mine.

If anyone finds my concerns about Mr. Walker's position "childish," please email me.

Dr. Quanbech, aside from your Office, I simply plucked email addresses very randomly off of UCI departments that I thought might be most sensitive to the grave injury that white supremacist language represents to the United States and the world. I would hope that those copied on this would feel very free to copy others on this email. .

A sub-topic of my discussions with Mr. Kaufman included comments about "refined" white supremacy versus other forms of it.  Again Mr. Kaufman was unwilling or unable to admit how much more lethal white supremacist language is when wielded by people who are highly proficient with respect to the use of language, or those that are credentialed by society, as teachers are.

I would invite all copied on this to consider that the only lesson Mr. Kaufman may learn out of this is to not reveal his identity or place of work. I certainly hope that this can bring about some kind of "conversion," for Mr. Kaufman. In my opinion, he owes an apology to the family of Steve Gilliard. I would hope that Mr. Kaufman would find some way to make substantial restitution to people who have been injured by the kind of of refined white supremacist language that he wants posted on an ABC affiliate. There's no shortage of victims and I have found that apologies untethered by restitution tend to be ephemeral.

Comments

[ilyka]

Oh geez.

"The Ghost of Adolph Rupp" now has to live the rest of his life knowing he actually took the time to send the laborious details of an online disagreement to someone's bosses. He really, seriously spent precious moments of his time on earth to do this.

Hmm. Maybe "pity" is the only appropriate response for me to have to him.

[Karl Steel]

Well, I hope UCI gives this letter the attention it deserves.

[Scott Eric Kaufman]

As do I. Still, there's a stain attached to someone who acquires multiple mentally unsound stalkers. People wonder whether they're really the issue, or whether it's you.

[Justin Blank]

If they take it seriously, it won't take them long to decide his complaint is absurd. This guy's bluster shows that he's taking it incredibly unseriously. He cares more about the chance to make a stink than anything else.

[Floyd]

Well at least if you go down as an 'academic enabler of white supremacy', Heidegger goes down with you.

[Mike Russo]

Perhaps it's inappropriate to fixate only on the comedy here, but the throw-away link to Wikipedia's entry on Heidegger is hilarity itself.

I hope dealing with this idiocy doesn't turn out too annoyingly, Scott.

[sarah irene]

Yikes. Thought I'd de-lurk to voice support ... call me naive, but the viciousness of all this is surprising, as is the effort taken in pursuit of the prize of your personal and professional destruction. I hope you're right that the letter-writing campaign doesn't make any waves.

[R.L.Page]

This may seem a bit convoluted, but perhaps not quite as convoluted as the letter in question. Consider this: what you have here is a conservative student doing what he believes to be a parody of the 'hand-wringing liberal,' in hopes of making trouble for an instructor he considers to be far too liberal.

The first 'false note' that jumped out for me was: "I am sorry to admit that I was largely ignorant of what a rare gift Congresswoman Waters is to our great nation, until I began reading Jane Hamsher's blog, FireDogLake." (All that needs is a 'BWAHAHA' after it.)

If UCI has a College Republicans chapter, I wouldn't be surprised to find this fellow on the membership rolls.

[Anonymous]

"In law, defamation is the communication of a statement that makes a false claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may harm the reputation of an individual, business, product, group, government or nation."

This letter's repeated description of your comments as "support of white supremacist language" not only makes false implications, but is expressly false - at no point do you support the language, merely the choice to link to it. This isn't even a matter of misinterpretation or misunderstanding as it was in the Gilbert incident. This is a deliberate misrepresentation of your position.

I sincerely hope that this letter will be recognized as defamation by its recipients. However, given the large number of alleged recipients and the alarmist tone of the letter, I have to admit I'm slightly concerned. In the event that you should suffer any harm as a result of this letter, I think you most likely have a legal case against "the Ghost of Adolph Rupp." Even though the letter was sent pseudonymously, he has an IP address. Your willingness not to "tattle" is admirable, but there are legal protections against defamation designed to protect you and others from these exact situations.

[Rich Puchalsky]

Was the letter actually sent pseudonymously? If so, are people really going to read it? I would think that this kind of accusation at least requires a real name.

So I wonder whether you've deleted the guy's real name off the letter, Scott. You write "If you do, I'll take the high ground and not reveal your identity. I'm no tattler." Well, in cases of extreme stupidity / calculated provocation such as this letter represents, I have an interest in finding out whether it is amateur (stupidity) or professional (provocation). Should I file a FOIA request for a copy of this public communication? Or can you tell us in general what kind of person turns up when you Google the name.

[Scott Eric Kaufman]

Rich, he sent the letter under his own name. I've chosen not to reprint it because, well, because of the principle of the thing. I own my words, he doesn't, and that matters.

[R.L.Page]

They that have power to hurt and will do none,
That do not do the thing, they most do show,
Who, moving others, are themselves as stone,
Unmovèd, cold, and to temptation slow,
They rightly do inherit heaven's graces,
And husband nature's riches from expense;
They are the lords and owners of their faces,
Others, but stewards of their excellence.
The summer's flower is to the summer sweet,
Though to itself, it only live and die,
But if that flower with base infection meet,
The basest weed outbraves his dignity.
For sweetest things turn sourest by their deeds;
Lilies that fester smell far worse than weeds.

[anonymous]

Since this Ghost likes Firedoglake so much, I looked for him on it. Look what I found.

[R.L.Page]

That sounds like what I suspected.

I wonder what searches at swampland like AceofSpadesHQ, Protein Wisdom, and Free Republic might turn up.

[anonymous]

This might also be of interest.

[anonymous]

Given the mention of Imus, this might be interesting too.

[Luther Blissett]

Scott, this is ridiculous, and I just wanted to voice my support for you. I was involved in a similar situation back in '98, when a professor at my undergraduate institution, denied tenure, started sending me harassing emails. When I responded angrily (and vulgarly), he threatened to send my email to the chair of my graduate department. To cover my ass, I sent a preemptive email to my chair that, while defending myself, made me look like an idiot for being involved in such a pissing contest. So personally, I'd ignore all this unless someone at UCI makes it an issue.

And I do think you have the foundation of a defamation suit here. Claiming that you enable white supremacy is like claiming that the ACLU enables the Klan.

[# 9]

Are these people from PatriotBoy blog the embodiment of the BORG?

Be assimilated or you will be fired.

Be assimilated or you will be reported to your superiors.

This is unacceptable behavior. This is extortionist blackmail. Agree with the BORG or be fucked with.

[Bruce from Missouri]

Scott, I for the most part, disagreed with your point of view on that whole kerfuffle, but this is just ridiculous. That guy needs to take a sedative or 20.

I hope this doesn't have any negative career repercussions for you

[dav]

SEK: I disagreed with your argument at the General's blog. However I certainly do not support what Adolphus is threatening to do to you. I hope this issue resolves itself in a mature manner, but do know that his doing this may constitute harrassment.

In short: Sue