Since the news of Dr. Kenneth Howell’s dismissal from the University of Illinois became public, students have been voicing their support for the professor and making efforts to bring him back to the university in the fall.
Howell was terminated this spring from his teaching position at the university for explaining in his Introduction to Catholicism class that the Catholic Church opposed homosexual behavior because it violates natural law.
Dr Kenneth Howell
An anonymous student complained that Howell’s statements were “hate speech.” Howell was subsequently fired, however, he maintains that he was simply presenting Catholic teaching in a class on Catholic thought.
Here is an excerpt from the email complaint made by an anonymous student against Dr. Howell:
“…allowing this hate speech at a public university is entirely unacceptable. It sickens me to know that hard-working Illinoisans are funding the salary of a man who does nothing but try to indoctrinate students and perpetuate stereotypes. Once again, this is a public university and should thus have no religious affiliation.”
(Editor’s comment: note the university’s announcement on Muslims and Islam at the end of the article)
The decision has received substantial media coverage, and the university has announced that it will have a faculty committee review the dismissal. The Diocese of Peoria has also announced that it will meet with officials from the university on Tuesday.
University of Illinois student Kristin DeSutter said that Howell “doesn’t deserve” to be fired for his teaching.
DeSutter was a student in the Introduction to Catholicism class this spring where Howell made the statements that resulted in his dismissal. She said that she was shocked when she heard that Howell was fired.
“He was a wonderful professor,” she told CNA. “He was very fair.”
Howell always stressed that while the students were in a class on Catholic thought, they would never be graded on their personal beliefs, DeSutter explained. “He made that very clear.”
Furthermore, the class was always open to debate and disagreement, DeSutter continued.
As an example, DeSutter described the final exam essay, in which students were asked to write a for-and-against analysis of homosexual behavior. Howell specifically told students that they would receive a poor grade if they only argued against it, she said.
Trisha Tan took classes with Howell at the Institute of Catholic Thought in 2008-2009. Now, Tan is helping organize a “Save Dr. Ken” group on Facebook.
“It’s an issue of academic freedom,” she said. “This is a professor who was terminated for doing what he was hired to do.”
Tan said that she knew many alumni from the university who were interested in helping Howell. She and others have encouraged them to call the university’s fundraising offices and explain that they will not make any more donations to the university until the professor is reinstated.
Furthermore, there has been a call to boycott Department of Religion classes this fall if Dr. Howell is not reinstated.
“It’s our way of showing the university that we as students don’t want a censored version of life…We want to study real life.”
The university’s administration has responded to emails, and the chancellor has called for a faculty committee to review the case.
Editor’s footnotes: this excerpt from the original complaint email sent to the university by an anonymous student
…”Once again, this is a public university and should thus have no religious affiliation.”
On April 16 and 17, 2010, the University of Illinois Department of Religion hosted an international symposium entitled “Islam, Salvation, and the Fate of Others.” The purpose of this symposium was to explore views on salvation in Islamic thought, particularly as it pertains to “Others,” i.e., non-Muslims.
Islam’s stand on homsexuality:
…all humans are naturally heterosexual. Homosexuality is seen by scholars to be a sinful and perverted deviation from the norm. All Islamic schools of thought and jurisprudence consider gay acts to be unlawful. They differ in terms of penalty:
The Hanabalites, (widely followed in the Arab world) teach that severe punishment is warranted including public execution. Some 4000 homosexuals have been executed to date.
