Hypocrite Law Professor Attempts to Holds Hiring Process Hostage

A law professor at the <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 />University of Windsor is claiming sexism and racism on the part of the tribunal that denied her application to become the Dean of Law. Professor Carasco is demanding that the Human Rights Tribunal force the university to give her the position, based upon her claim that she was ruled out based on her gender and race. The fact that she was accused of plagiarism, which, as an experienced lawyer, she should know to be illegal, has nothing to do with the decision, she claims. Her stance is that the concerns over plagiarism were raised by colleagues so that they could remove portions of her work discussing racism, which as Whites, they felt needed to be swept under the rug. She is demanding damages from the school, and the colleague who raised the concern, to the tune of some $75,000, for injury to dignity.

 

It seems to me that it is more damaging to her dignity to grasp at straws, wasting government funds on an investigation into these ludicrous claims, and make demands of a hiring-board that does not have the jurisdiction to grant these demands even if the Human Rights Tribunal were to side with her, which, considering the position she is attempting to take by force. As Dean of Law, she should have an appreciation of the fact that theft of intellectual property is a serious allegation, but as things stand, she is showing the opposite to be true. Moreover, wasting time and tax dollars to try and impose her will by claims of racism and sexism, from a committee made up of men and women from various backgrounds, is equally as repugnant. Her concerns over these issues only surfaced after the board came to the conclusion that NONE of their candidates, not even those evil White heterosexual males, were suitable.

 

Equal rights are something that everyone should be entitled to in this country. However, with rights come responsibilities. Equal rights thus entail equal accountability for actions, so that whether you are a White, Anglo-Saxon male, or a woman born in Pakistan, raised in Africa, you are held to the same laws against plagiarism, and you have to go through the same steps to prove your candidacy for a position. Gender and race should not, under any circumstances, be justifications for giving or denying a position or appointment. However, they should equally not be used to debase serious accusations. When the book in which the alleged plagiarism occurred was being published, she had no problems with the co-authors’ concerns, and their editing out of these contentious passages. Now, four years later, and not getting her way, she is crying discrimination by her colleagues, who previously she had been able to have a healthy working relationship, apparently.

 

Professor Carasco’s actions are not only childish, as when a two year old starts to scream and stamp his or her feet in the shop because mummy and daddy say no treats right now, but they are damaging to the very laws she studied and is supposed to uphold. Fraudulent charges and accusations cheapen the laws, so that the serious concerns are taken less seriously. Perhaps the professor should be given a copy of The Boy Who Cried Wolf, because that is exactly what she seems to be doing. By all means, let the Human Rights board investigate her allegations, but if, as seems likely, they do not find her claims justified, then hold the Professor financially accountable for the costs incurred in this debacle. If she truly did plagiarise the passages in question, then not only were the tribunal justified in denying her application, but the School would be justified in terminating her position as a professor, and she should be disbarred. Lawyers may not be renowned for their integrity, but they are still expected to be accountable for their actions, and uphold the law. Let her face the accusations like an adult, like the strong woman she is supposed to be. If she is innocent of Plagiarism, let her re-apply. Until then, sit down, shut up, and take responsibility for your actions. Do NOT point the finger at everyone else, and try to muddy the waters.