The appointment of Marc Short, President Donald J. Trump’s former legislative affairs director, to a position at University of Virginia’s Miller Center and Darden has prompted two professors to tender resignation.
Noted history professors William I. Hitchcock and Melvyn P. Leffler on Monday submitted a joint resignation letter to William J. Antholis, Director of the Center accusing him of making the appointment without adequate faculty discussions, deliberation, and a vote.
“The appointment of Mr. Short runs counter to the Center’s fundamental values of non-partisanship, transparency, openness, a passion for truth and objectivity, and civility,” both the historians wrote.
The resignation comes on the heels of an online petition which has garnered nearly 3,000 signatures as of Tuesday morning, urging the university to withhold its plans to hire Short as a senior fellow effective August 1.
I resigned from a think tank at UVa today because I felt it betrayed its principles in giving a senior fellowship to Trump advisor Marc Short. It is a sad day for me but I’ll continue to work at UVa with brilliant colleagues in the cause of civil discourse. pic.twitter.com/HsH1pw2hXK
— William Hitchcock (@WillHitchUVA) July 30, 2018
The historians accused Short of being a partisan activist during his entire professional career. “He has associated himself with people and institutions who disregard, circumvent and even violate the norms and laws that are fundamental to civil discourse and democratic politics.”
Professors argued it was “especially egregious” to appoint Short ahead of the one-year anniversary of the neo-Nazi riots of August 2017.
“These riots took place in our community and our university. In the wake of those tragic events, President Trump failed to repudiate the alt-right and its street thugs. Until his appointment to a fellowship at UVA, Mr. Short did not distance himself from President Trump’s remarks,” the two wrote in the letter.
The professors further urged people to speak out and take a stand on things they believe to be wrong.