Lawsuit: Scholar Kept From US Over Views

[951-Riverside]

Source: Associated Press

BOSTON (AP) -- A well-known South African scholar and political commentator is being kept out of the United States because he has been a vocal critic of the war in Iraq and the detention of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, the American Civil Liberties Union charged in a lawsuit filed Tuesday.

In the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Boston, the ACLU said the U.S. government's decision to revoke the visa of Adam Habib last year has forced him to turn down invitations to speak to various political organizations, violating the First Amendment rights of U.S. citizens who were prevented from hearing his views.

Habib, a Muslim, is currently deputy vice-chancellor of Research, Innovation and Advancement at the University of Johannesburg.

He said in an interview last year that he was held for several hours after he arrived in New York City in October to attend a series of meetings with organizations such as the World Bank. Habib said he was questioned by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials about his political views and was asked whether he belonged to or supported any terrorist organizations.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SCHOLAR_EXCLUDED?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-09-25-13-05-31

[Trillo]

1. More ideology from BushCo.

It's stupid to exclude someone for their political, social, or economic views and ideas. Let him visit and speak.

Oh, nevermind, he's a muslim, must be a ideological terrorist, better keep em out. /sarcasm.