Obama's terrorist pal Ayers denied emeritus status at UIC

In 1995 Barack Obama began his political career in the living room of unrepentant Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers and his fellow terrorist wife, Benardine Dohrn. After years on the run and the dropping of charges against him because of prosecutorial misconduct, Ayers became an education professor at the University of Illinois-Chicago.

He just retired, but UIC, which never should have hired him in the first place, kicked him on the way out the door. Too little, too late perhaps, but I'm glad they did it. All nine trustees voted against or abstained from granting Ayers emeritus status.

Chris Kennedy phrased his opposition brilliantly:

"There is nothing more antithetical to the hopes for a university that is lively and yet civil, or to the hopes of our founding fathers for their great experiment of a self-governing people, than to permanently seal off debate with one's opponents by killing them," Kennedy said. "There can be no place in a democracy to celebrate political assassinations or to honor those who do so."

Ayers was among the co-authors of a 1974 terrorist manifesto, Prairie Fire: The Politics of Revolutionary Anti-Imperialism: Political Statement of the Weather Underground. Sirhan Sirhan, whom the authors called a political prisoner, was among the villains the Ayers and the other authors dedicated the book to in its preface.

Sirhan assassinated Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, Chris' father, in 1968, in front of many witnesses.

Emeritus status for a retired professor is honorary, but it is almost never denied to ex-academics.

Technorati tags: Politics Bill Ayers terrorism Weather Underground Illinois Politics Obama Barack Obama Democrats chicago Illinois UIC University of Illinois Kennedy history books