San Diego State University Professor Ghassan Zakaria eliminates truth in his classroom

Just as the authorities dismiss the claims of Jewish students of hostile campus climate...

From ABC News, Channel 10 in San Diego

A map distributed in a language class at San Diego State University labeled Israel as Palestine, leading to an outcry from the local Jewish community.

 Sources told Team 10 the map was handed out by a professor on the second day of class in an Arabic language course. Sources said students were upset and unsure how to protest the erroneous map because they feared speaking out publicly could have a negative impact on their grades. 

One student talked with Team 10, on the condition of anonymity."I don't really believe it was the right place for dialogue," the student said. "It is a language class, it's not a class about conflict." 

Students gave the map to the non-profit, pro-Israel San Diego group, "Stand With Us."The group sent a newsletter to its members and urged the community to contact the department's chairman and Arabic program director. The group also posted the map to its Facebook page. The electronic newsletter states the map "not only fails to label 'Israel' as a legitimate country," but that "it falsely portrays the entire territory of Israel as 'Palestine....'"

 The department chair said the professor used Palestine in place of Israel on the labels to "reflect the view of Arab-speakers in the region." Team 10 contacted SDSU late Tuesday morning with questions about the handout, and on Tuesday afternoon the school issued this statement:

 "While SDSU encourages scholarly debate and discussion of varying opinions, presenting inaccurate information to students in not acceptable. SDSU's Provost has conferred with the department chair, who spoke with the faculty member. This inaccurate portrayal will not reoccur."

As of today, the map  has been altered and redistributed, with Israel scrawled by hand

From Channel 10

Sources said the new map students received Wednesday was only a slight improvement. They said it marginally showcased Israel's true and legitimate existence in the region.

Sources also added that their ideal solution would have been to distribute a real and accurate map of the Middle East rather than adding the obviously handwritten word "Israel" to an incorrect map of the region.

As of late Wednesday evening, the professor had not issued an apology to the Jewish community.

Will  the new Palestine Solidarity Legal Support advocacy project advocate for Ghassan Zakaria's right  to spread lies and misinformation in the name of academic freedom?

Perhaps.

The stated goals of the initiative sponsored by the Center for Constitutional Rights, in collaboration with the National Lawyers Guild mentions nothing about ensuring truth or accuracy, as they seek to

* Track incidents of repression of Palestinian rights activism
* Provide legal advice, referrals or representation
* Undertake advocacy to support activism
* Provide activists with legal and advocacy resources

We should fear for  all students in today's 'truth optional' academic environment