Word count: 1,761
It’s
been a while since Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall set his
prosecutorial sights on former UNC-Chapel Hill Professor Julius Nyang’oro, head
of the school’s African and Afro-American Studies Department in what has become
to be known as an “academic” scandal enabling academically challenged athletes
to remain academically eligible to play inter-collegiate sports. The biased media, with emphasis on The News & Observer, has placed
Nyang’oro at the center of this brouhaha and painted him as the mastermind
behind the unscrupulous practice of enrolling scholastically under-performing
African American students in “no-show” classes and having tutor engage in
ghost-writing reports and other class assignments.
With
sickening relish in destroying the life and reputation of an African American
professional, the N & O, as
recently as Sunday, June 22, 2014, heralded the upcoming court appearance by Nyang’oro
in a felony criminal case brought by the Orange County D.A. Woodall. It seems that Nyang’oro accepted $12,000.00
for teaching a class which did not meet and which was heavily enrolled by black
student-athletes. After the media
pounced on this apparent misstep by the professor, Nyang’oro stepped down as
department chair, was forced into early retirement, and UNC-CH recouped its $12
grand salary by deducting it from Nyang’oro.
D.A.
Woodall was all set to prosecute the head of the African American studies
program when things happened which took the air out from under his wings…
namely, the light of truth started to shine.
The truth, which is plainly obvious to most Tar Heelians, is that
Nyang’oro was in reality a very small cog in a very large academic turbo-engine
which was designed to make UNC-CH competitive in football and basketball by
making sure that the athletes remained academically eligible. To begin with, many of these athletes, as
exposed by UNC whistleblower Mary Willingham, were not academically of college
caliber… some close to being illiterate.
Although they represented UNC on the gridiron and basketball court,
these students were not recruited by Nyang’oro, and he did not advise them to
enroll in his classes. Nyang’oro was
nothing more than acting as a good soldier… following orders handed down to him
by his superiors. Nyang’oro did not
devise or implement the academic-fraud system… he merely executed it as
demanded by those in high places. As a
result of the athletic successes and championships, millions of dollars were
brought to the school. It’s a fact that
winning college sports teams bring in big bucks to the institutions they
represent.
It
is evident, especially with recent revelations by former UNC roundballer Rashad
McCants that the 2005 NCAA national championship Tar Heel team owes its success
in great measure to Nyang’oro whose classes allowed McCants and other star
players on that team to remain eligible.
UNC-CH should have given Nyang’oro an award for his fidelity to the
school instead of forcing him out and using him as a scapegoat… fodder for a
district attorney who has no scruples about criminalizing an innocent African
American man. Truth be told, Julius
Nyang’oro should be repaid his $12,000.00 salary because he conducted his class
courses as demanded by those high up in the university’s chain of command… he
enabled the athletes who struggled in the classroom to remain eligible. In no way did he defraud the school or the
student-athletes. McCants, and other student
athletes in his position were aware of how the academic-eligibility game was
played and that their diploma would not be worth more than the sheepskin upon
which it was printed.
In the June 21, 2014 issue of The News & Observer, Dan Kane begins
the article “Wainstein probe reaches back” by stating “UNC-Chapel Hill wants to
move forward, so Kenneth Wainstein first has to look back. In this case, way back.” I disagree with this premise totally. I have no problem with the university moving
forward, but to hire an expensive legal firm to investigate the past is nothing
more than a waste of money. According to
the article, Wainstein has been conducting his investigation for at least four months with Wainstein personally
being paid $990.00 an hour and three of his associates being paid anywhere
between $440.00 and $775.00 an hour. How
do they get away with demanding such outrageously high compensation? UNC system President Tom Ross tries to give
assurances that the money going to pay these overpriced avaricious attorneys is
not coming from taxpayer funds. I don’t
believe that; and if that is the case, where is the money to pay them coming
from? Undoubtedly the legal tab has
risen far beyond the million dollar mark and the UNC system will logically recoup
the amount spent on this ridiculous investigation by raising tuition. Although there may be no specific taxpayer
fund footing the bill, the state institution can’t help but bilk Tar Heelian
taxpayers out of millions of dollars.
Well, at least, $12,000.00 of Nyang’oro’s pay will go towards paying for
the investigation. Comforting to know,
isn’t it?
Ross has given Wainstein and his firm
free rein in the conduct of the investigation… and no wonder it is stretching
back so far. The investigation is so
encompassing because those doing the investigation are being compensated on an
hourly basis. Nothing is to be gained by
the Wainstein investigation. Everyone
knows what happened… UNC-CH steered academically at risk athletes to “no- show”
classes to assure their academic eligibility.
By doing so, it made UNC-CH competitive in the high revenue generating
NCAA basketball and football programs.
What difference does it make who was responsible for putting together
this academic-athletic fraud? Instead
the UNC system should move forward and put in place measures to assure their
athletes are qualified to do college level work, remove no-show classes, and
see that athletes, and not tutors, read their assignments and write their
reports. By doing so, however, UNC-CH
will more likely than not become permanent cellar dwellers in the basketball
and football standings… that is, unless all other universities in the ACC adopt
the same standards.
Orange County D.A. Woodall, has likewise
wasted taxpayer money by instigating the worthless felony prosecution of
Nyang’oro. Facing the prospect of
drawing in other high-ranking officials into the criminal prosecution of the
black professor is the major impetus for Woodall to fall back from his prior
aggressive stance in this case.
Evidently, from the Wainstein investigation thus far, Woodall has
learned what most Tar Heelians already knew… that Nyang’oro was merely acting
in concert with a system which was already well established to insure the
university fielded talented football and basketball teams. For Wainstein to proceed with the Nyang’oro
prosecution would only reveal the true folly of the action taken by him against
the dedicated and loyal university professor.
In order to save face, Woodall is
claiming that he’s considering dropping charges because Nyang’oro is being
cooperative in Wainstein’s investigation.
Woodall would’ve found Nyang’oro cooperative had he conducted an
investigation instead of prematurely jumping forward to indict Nyang’oro as a
felon for accepting $12,000.00 in compensation for heading up “no-show” classes
for the benefit of UNC-CH. In The News & Observer article of June
24, 2014, titled “Nyang’oro charge may be dropped,” Woodall actually seems to
be shocked by Nyang’oro’s interaction with the Wainstein investigation saying,
“It appears that Nyang’oro has cooperated fully with them and actually, I
think, maybe gone over and above what was expected from him.”
UNC-CH history professor Jay Smith, who
for some reason has been pressing for an in-depth investigation into the
scandal, admitted that it struck him as odd that Nyang’oro is the only person
facing a penalty for the scandal. It’s
not so surprising when one considers that Nyang’oro is black. Unfortunately in this state in this post-civil
rights era, race does matter. Of course,
that is clearly evident in the Crystal Mangum case.
D.A. Woodall had absolutely no
compunction about investigating then Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Clay
Nichols for mishandling evidence in a Cumberland County murder case. But he has refused to investigate Nichols for
proven allegations of perjury in Mangum’s trial (testifying that Reginald
Daye’s spleen was removed at surgery eleven days prior to autopsy and therefore
wasn’t available at autopsy, and yet describing the organ in detail in his
autopsy report on Daye) and production of a false and fraudulent autopsy
report. However, Woodall is in league
with others, including Durham D.A. Leon Stanback, and the NC Attorney General’s
Office in refusing to investigate the work product of Nichols in the Mangum
case. That’s because it is too political
and the Powers-That-Be who have hijacked the state’s justice system are sworn
to see Mangum suffer retribution for her claims of being sexually assaulted at
a March 2006 party hosted by Duke lacrosse players.
Make no mistake about it… Woodall is the
type of district attorney the Powers-That-Be want at the reins of the important
criminal/legal position. A district
attorney who is malleable to the every whim of those in control, and a district
attorney who is not moved by issues of morality and fairness. Former District Attorney Mike Nifong would
never have indicted Professor Nyang’oro, and dollars to donunts he most definitely
would have investigated Medical Examiner Nichols for his actions in the Crystal
Mangum case. The reasons I believe
Nifong would act thusly is because he has proven himself to be a man of
integrity who is guided by precepts of ethics, fairness, and justice… a man
possessing the independence and courage to fully commit to his conscience in
doing the right thing.
These qualities with which Mike Nifong
has been endowed marked him as a major obstacle in the takeover of the justice
system, and that is the reason that he was forced from his elected position in
the powerful district attorney position.
To dissuade others from following in his footsteps, the State
methodically persecuted Nifong while the biased mainstream media crucified
him. The State and media collaborated in
a demonization enterprise against Nifong that is not dissimilar to that used
against Crystal Mangum.
To Orange County District Attorney Jim
Woodall I say: “I have the privilege of knowing Mike Nifong, and you, Mr.
Woodall, are no Mike Nifong.” And that
is the reason medical examiners will selectively not be prosecuted for
producing fraudulent autopsy reports and committing perjury at trial. That is the reason why innocent African
American professionals will be preyed upon solely for the purpose of ruining
their lives and reputations. That is why
all Tar Heelians are currently living under a legal system in which justice has
been corrupted and hijacked.
