Forwarded to the list at the request of Professor Jordan:


Colleagues:
        For the past few days I have silently read the
Jefferson discussion on this listsev and noted that the
tone has often deteriorated from civil to strident. Mr.
Kneebone and Ms. Roderick are highly respected voices of
reason here and in Virginia. I know Mr. Kneebone personally
and he can hardly be labeled as someone who who "gag"
someone, especially a fellow scholar.
        Before someone misstates my record or questions my
motive for writing now, I will state that I have been a
member of the Advisory Committee on African-American
Interpretation at Monticello
[http://www.monticello.org/gettingword/GWabout1.html] since
1992 and am proud to be associated with such fine historian
talents. I was appointed to the board by Monticello
Executive Director Dr. Dan Jordan (no relation) despite the
fact that I was known in some circles at the University as
a Jefferson critic.
        Finally, those of us who joined this listserv early
on agreed to follow certain standards and rules of
netiquette. If someone feels they are being "gagged" on
this or any other listserv they are free to leave it and/or
create their own. President Bush, in his recent
inaugural address, has rightly asked for more civility in
public discourse: "America, at its best, matches a
commitment to principle with a concern for civility. A
civil society demands from each of us good will and
respect, fair   dealing and forgiveness"
[http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/inaugural-address.html].

Professor Ervin L. Jordan,  Jr., University of Virginia;
Editorial Advisory board, Footsteps: African American
History; Board of Trustees, Virginia Museum of Natural
History; Virginia State Historical Records Advisory Board;
Advisory Committee on African-American  Interpretation at
Monticello; Somerset Place Foundation Board of Directors,
North Carolina.

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