Last week, over 40 UW-Madison affiliated employees have signed an online petition to Support Bill Ayers"" and his academic achievements.
Bill Ayers, a 20-year professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, has come under fire for his involvement with the terrorist organization, the Weather Underground. The Obama campaign has taken steps to distance themselves from Ayers and his alleged acts of terrorism during the Vietnam War.
The petition calls for all citizens, in particular scholars and teachers, to support Ayers for his exemplary scholarship, teaching and service. As of Oct. 28, the petition has received 4,090 signatures online, a majority of which affiliate with a university or college. Over 40 names on the petition listed an alignment to the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The UW System has very strict rules regarding professors' political campaign activities at UW-Madison. A portion of the rules regarding campaign activity includes, ""promoting action on issues which have become highly identified as dividing issues between the candidates.""
The restrictions also state the only time a university employee is allowed to list their official job title is when it is evident that their personal opinion or endorsement is intended to reflect that of the university. According to UW System policy, university employees may only engage in political campaign activities as a private citizen on private time with private resources.
The UW System code makes it strikingly obvious that the state has taken many measures to create a clear schism between the university and all political campaign activity.
The ""Support Bill Ayers"" petition violates UW System policy by affiliating university employees with an issue, in this case the relationship between Barack Obama and Bill Ayers, that has become a dividing issue between the candidates.
Although university employees should not be limited in their ability to act as private citizens, signing a petition using their UW-Madison employment as credibility is in direct violation of UW System policy.
The university should take steps to remove its name from a petition that associates its employees with a controversial figure in the 2008 presidential election. Other signatures on the petition are listed with no affiliation at all - o - oUW-Madison employees could have voiced their opinions without using the university's name. Those who have signed should have UW-Madison removed from their endorsement and face repercussions for future political activity that is in apparent violation of UW System policy.
