Written  By: John Stephen

      A former VSU professor is at the center of a rapidly growing controversy over an open letter that the professor sent to Georgia legislators condemning government support for Confederate commemorations.

      Dr. Mark P. George, VSU professor until May 2014, is planning to file an official complaint against VSU for what he said are wrongful actions by university officials, including the deletion of Dr. George’s university email account and the delayed release of funds for an organization that Dr. George runs.

     Dr. George said these actions occurred as retaliation to an open letter he sent to state officials, but VSU President William J. McKinney and VSU Provost Hudson Rogers said VSU is simply following standard University System of Georgia procedures and policies.

            The saga began on June 23 when Dr. George and Reverend Floyd Rose sent an open letter through Dr. George’s VSU email account to Governor Nathan Deal and Georgia lawmakers. The letter asked the state government to remove backing for Confederate holidays and events and to change all state roads and highways named after Confederate leaders.

            The letter was sent on behalf of the Mary Turner Project and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference’s (SCLC) local chapter. The MTP is an organization started by Dr. George that is dedicated to remembering a violent 1918 lynching spree as well as compiling slave census data online, and Rose is the president of Valdosta’s SCLC chapter.

            Dr. George and Rose argued in the letter that Confederate commemorations stem from white supremacy ideology and should not be associated with Georgia’s state government.

           No one responded to the letter, but on July 11, VSU President William J. McKinney received an email from John C. Hall Jr., a VSU alumnus and Sons of Confederate Veterans member. In the email, Hall complained about Dr. George’s use of public resources (his VSU position and email) in inappropriate ways.

       Among other things, Hall said Dr. George’s letter was a political move meant to affect the upcoming gubernatorial election. In addition, Hall argued that the political activism of Dr. George and the MTP may violate state laws governing the VSU Foundation, a charitable corporation that contributes to the MTP and must adhere to certain political restrictions.

      “The use of Valdosta State University, its email, its address and its resources should not be allowed for political purposes,” Hall’s email read. “The potential negative publicity and legality of what he is doing could harm my college and I do not want that to happen.

      “I resent this ‘professor’ and his comments. Valdosta State should not be employing activists like this at my alma mater…His contract should not be renewed,” Hall said.

      Initially, Dr. McKinney supported Dr. George’s actions, talking to his staff about the importance of academic freedom. There was even a response drafted to Hall that said Dr. George had not violated any laws.

      At this point, USG officials were aware of and monitoring this situation.

      Then, on July 18, Dr. George sent an email to all parties involved responding to Hall’s initial complaints. He said that his open letter and the research behind it were a mere fulfillment of his duties as a sociology/women and gender studies professor, which are “to solve problems and change lives,” assist “diverse, vulnerable groups,” and pursue “a vision of social justice,” according to each department’s website.

     Furthermore, Dr. George said the MTP’s commentary on political issues ‒ in this case, Confederate commemorations in Georgia ‒ does not violate any tax laws because the IRS allows non-profit organizations to take positions on public policy issues as long as they don’t endorse political campaigns or candidates. Dr. George said the MTP has remained within this law.

    At the end of his email, Dr. George addressed Hall personally.

     “Mr. Hall has no real concern about our alma mater, VSU’s reputation, nor the use of VSU resources,” Dr. George said. “Instead, Mr. Hall is simply what social science scholars have termed a ‘Neo-Confederate’ wedded to a historically inaccurate and romanticized version of southern history.

      “My simple offense is that our letter to the governor and Assembly has raised serious scholarly, critical questions about the accuracy of the narrative, and current state activities, that he and others like him hold dear,” Dr. George said.

      It was this personal attack against Hall that caused Thomas Daniel, USG’s senior vice chancellor for external affairs, to advise Dr. McKinney to take action to calm the situation. A flurry of emails ensued between VSU officials, USG administrators, Georgia legislators, Dr. George and Hall concerning what was happening and what should be done.

      On July 28, Dr. George sent a follow-up letter to the Georgia General Assembly, asking them to respond to his previous letter. That same day Dr. George’s VSU email account was deleted. Shortly after, The MTP funds from the VSU Foundation ($247) failed to be released.

        Dr. George said that VSU has failed to provide evidence that he violated any VSU/USG policies.

        Dr. Rogers said that Dr. George’s email account was deleted because it is a standard procedure to delete an account 45 days after that person leaves VSU, and Dr. George’s contract at VSU expired in May. This procedure is listed on the IT department’s website, but is not found anywhere in VSU’s official email policy.

          Dr. George said that he knows of several professors whose accounts weren’t deleted after leaving VSU and believes that he was singled out for this action, an allegation that Dr. Rogers said holds no merit

     Dr. McKinney said the delayed release of the MTP funds is attributed only to a logistics issue.

       “The Mary Turner Project funds have never been, nor will they ever be, frozen,” Dr. McKinney said. “Dr. George has asked that the funds raised specifically for the Mary Turner Project be donated to a charity not affiliated with VSU or the Mary Turner Project.

     “Any Foundation funds raised for a specific purpose, in this case the Mary Turner Project, may only be spent on expenses directly related to that purpose,” Dr. McKinney said.

     Therefore, according to Dr. McKinney, the delay of the funds is due to how the money is to be spent and not because of the controversy between Dr. George and Hall.

     In addition, Dr. Rogers said that because Dr. George stopped working for VSU in May, his actions this summer were those of a private citizen, not a professor.

     Dr. McKinney said he shifted from his stance of supporting Dr. George because he didn’t know initially that Dr. George was no longer teaching at VSU.

     Rogers said he met with Dr. George twice in July and believed they had reached an agreeable resolution.

     But Dr. George is not appeased. He said VSU has wronged him in several ways, which is why he is filing an official complaint with the USG. He has also contacted numerous media outlets and people associated with VSU in an attempt to shine a spotlight on his circumstances.

     Hall, one of the original characters in this controversy, said Dr. George’s personal attack against Hall is what caused problems for Dr. George.

     “The university was prepared to give the standard defense of a professor having the freedom to express himself using the university’s email and resources,” Hall said. “Professor Dr. George attacking me got his email closed ‒ not his free speech issue.

     “He called me a neo-confederate ‒ a pure attempt to demonize myself and others because they just don’t like anybody who stands up for the honor of their ancestors,” Hall said.

     In addition, Hall said Dr. George attempted (unsuccessfully) to file a complaint against Hall with the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants, a group Hall belongs to as a part of his occupation.

     Hall said he is fine with Dr. George continuing his work with the MTP, as long as he doesn’t use VSU resources to do so. But in response to Dr. George’s open letter advocating against state support for Confederate commemorations, Hall is unrelenting.

     “I, along with many Georgians, have had enough of efforts like Professor George to remove Confederate monuments, change street names, and of course the efforts that went behind changing Georgia’s flag,” Hall said. “The Confederacy is a part of Georgia’s history.

     “I liken his efforts and others to the Taliban destroying the Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan. When is enough for these haters of the South?” Hall said.

     Keep an eye on The Spectator’s website and future printed editions for more updates on this story.