McKinney's Appointment An Insult

McKinney’s Appointment An Insult

Commentary by Sanford D. Horn

August 23, 2003

Last week Cornell University reached a new low with its dubious appointment of Cynthia McKinney to a three-year term as a Frank H.T. Rhodes visiting professor.

McKinney, a former five-term Georgia Congressman, will lecture for a minimum of two weeks per semester on the subjects of human rights, voting rights and the political process. The Atlanta native, 48, blamed the Jewish community in her DeKalb County district for her defeat in the 2002 Democratic primary race at the hands of current Congressman Denise Majette. AIPAC (American Israel Political Action Committee), “targeted me for defeat,” said McKinney, following her loss and referred to Majette’s victory as a “Zionist conspiracy.”

In addition to her rantings that the Jewish community was responsible for her political undoing, McKinney, virulently anti-Israel, has been described as racist, derisive and divisive, garnering 81 percent of the black vote, but only 5 percent of the white vote en route to her five previous victories.

In McKinney’s delusional thinking, she accused President George W. Bush of orchestrating the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City as well as the Pentagon in Arlington, VA. In addition to that wild accusation, McKinney suggested President Bush did nothing in order to protect his father’s defense industry stocks.

Following the Sept. 11 attacks, then New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani rejected a $10 million donation from Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal. Remember, 15 of the 19 Sept. 11 hijacker-terrorists were Saudis. McKinney not only had the gall to apologize to the prince, but suggested that he spend the money in her congressional district.

Further, on October 26, 2002, McKinney joined Arabs in an anti-war rally in Washington, DC. She has long been a supporter of Palestinian statehood – clearly a mistake in the wake of the Tuesday, August 19 homicide bus bombing by Hamas in Jerusalem, among other numerous continued assaults on the Jewish state.

“Cynthia McKinney is a person of considerable achievement in the political sphere,” said Porus Olpadwala, dean of Cornell’s School of Architecture, Art and Planning as well as chair of the 13-member faculty committee that brought McKinney to campus.

The alumni of Cornell University should be aware of such appointments in order to determine if they wish to continue making financial commitments to their alma mater. Tell Cornell you are outraged by this appointment and will not fund anything sponsored by the university until this insulting appointment is reversed.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer living in Alexandria, VA.