A message from the Texas professor who was fired for offending Muslim students

Last December I posted here about Professor Paul Derengowski, who was dismissed from Tarrant County College in Fort Worth, Texas for annoying Muslim students by quoting from Islamic texts. I have just received this message from him:

For the past year I’ve been living under a dark cloud. A cloud that was created one night (November 8, 2011) during a class I was teaching on Islam at Tarrant County College in Fort Worth, Texas. Two Muslim students who did not like me answering their questions about their beloved Muhammad and the sources I used to do it, namely the Koran and a Muslim scholar, set forth a campaign orchestrated long before that night ever arrived, to smear me as a person and force me out as a professor. For those interested, you can read more about that night here, as well as indulge yourself with all the firsthand documents, some of which produced by TCC which only contribute to the defamation due to their dubious nature.
Today, though, after much hard work and persistence, I’m ready to take this fight to the next level. But, I need your help. Since last December the Thomas More Law Center has been my advocate in all of this. Clearly TCC violated my rights as a professor, but the TMLC could not file the appropriate lawsuit because of a lack of knowing someone locally who could handle the footwork of filing the papers in federal court. Now that has changed.

My request for help is to cover the legal expense. It is an expense to not only safeguard my right to express myself, but an expense that everyone will pay, sooner or later, should they not get involved now, to safeguard their freedom to speak as well.

Therefore, for those interested in helping, I’m including the following PayPal link. No specified amount is designated. I leave that purely up to you. Thank you for your consideration and your generosity.

Prof. Derengowski Legal Fund

(https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=9BBQWY7UCGUUQ)

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14 Comments

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Stand fast in the liberty | November 2, 2012 2:26 PM | Reply

If we all give just a small amount, the professor's expenses would be more than covered. Lend a hand now, so the future doesn't bring an amputated hand.

Thanks, JWers!

Stuart Parsons | November 2, 2012 4:14 PM | Reply

Im have donated and urge others in the United Kingdom to do so.

thomas_h | November 2, 2012 4:28 PM | Reply

I'm chipping in.

thomas_h replied to comment from thomas_h | November 2, 2012 4:34 PM | Reply

...og opfordrer andre danskere at gøre det samme.

dumbledoresarmy | November 2, 2012 5:54 PM | Reply

Let's hope he wins, and that this becomes a first step toward re-establishing academic freedom (specifically, the right for scholars to engage in free and critical inquiry into the texts and the practice and history of islam) in the Universities of the Western world.

https://me.yahoo.com/a/PN7StAoLtP7wqt.EEgm9IxwbNCmV#8fc46 | November 2, 2012 11:56 PM | Reply

I just donated. I hope that he wins his case.

Steffen Larsen | November 3, 2012 12:21 AM | Reply

Så afgjort.

RonaldB | November 3, 2012 9:07 AM | Reply

I'm contributing to Prof Derengowski's fund.

I read through his entire description of the incident at Tarrant Community College, and through some of his website, including his description of atheism, which I consider to be inadequate.

I quite agree with his contention that an instructor should not eschew a world view as an organizing principle. My impression is that Prof. Derengowshi was tolerant of other views, as long as they were backed up factually and rationally. The crux of teaching is not to impart a particular view, for that is indoctrination. Teaching is to teach a method of inquiry and the separation of facts from opinions and unsubstantiated assertions.

Tarrant Community College is a public institution, and particularly unlikely to be a center of administrative courage. The only way to force the administration of a public institution to consider facts, rather than expediency, is to make it costly for them to give in to the loudest shouter. Hence, I am contributing to the legal fund of Prof. Derengowski.

We need to pressure institutions of learning to genuinely value factual inquiry and critical scrutiny. Islam specifically forbids critical scrutiny of itself, probably because it is so apparent that Islam cannot stand up to critical scrutiny. This has actually been a pretty successful Darwinian strategy on the part of Islam. It is absolutely critical to not allow this strategy to take hold of institutions of learning in Western countries, and in the US in particular.

georgeformby01 | November 3, 2012 9:17 AM | Reply

Before I consider making a contribution to Prof.Derengowshi's Legal Defence Fund, I would like to know whether he applied for help from the ACLU and, if so, what was the response?

-George

billposer | November 3, 2012 12:02 PM | Reply

The link to the previous Jihadwatch post about this case is bad.

traeh | November 3, 2012 2:02 PM | Reply

I just did an internet search and found a video showing the same professor's face, and a link to the same paypal page. I have now donated.

Please all, donate. This guy deserves credit for putting himself on the front lines, and legal costs are high.

spywalker | November 3, 2012 2:05 PM | Reply

The correct link for the previous (Dec 2011) Jihad Watch post about the case is:

http://www.jihadwatch.org/2011/12/muslim-students-threaten-force-resignation-of-prof-who-quoted-from-islamic-texts.html

"For those interested, you can read more about that night here":

http://capro.info/Cults/Islam/Tarrant_County_College/Tell_Them_the_Truth.html

Jan | November 3, 2012 3:57 PM | Reply

He's a brave bloke, with integrity. I **really** hope he wins.

derengowski | November 4, 2012 12:06 PM | Reply

Greetings,

Thanks to everyone who has commented and made contributions. You've been a real encouragement. Thanks especially to Mr. Spencer for his consideration in posting this latest update concerning my plight. It's been quite the experience to say the least.

To answer George's question above, not yet. As has been typical, I'm waiting to see what my attorney at TMLC will do first. The attorney here in Texas is also waiting. He has also recommended the ACLU, but I'm of the persuasion that in order to keep things somewhat orderly, I'll deal with one entity, problem, and question at a time.

This week should prove interesting, though, as I'll be meeting with TCC officials before a federal mediator in Dallas. Since TCC slammed me in the media a few months ago by accusing me of "creating a hostile learning environment," they have been tight-lipped. We'll see how much talking they do come Thursday. Probably not much. I expect nothing more than the usual stonewalling.

I'll go for now. Anyway other queries can be made by writing me at apologetics@capro.info. Again, thanks for your contributions, thoughts, and prayers. Please keep them coming. I need them.

Prof. Derengowski Legal Fund

(https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=9BBQWY7UCGUUQ)

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