American Sociological Association v. Clinton - Plaintiff Statements in Response to Secretary Clinton's Order

Adam Habib
"My family and I are thrilled by Secretary Clinton's decision, and we are thankful to the many organizations that put pressure on the Obama administration to stop excluding people from the United States on the basis of their political views. This is not only a personal victory but also a victory for democracy around the world, and we hope this signals a move by the administration to begin restoring the liberties and freedoms that have been so badly eroded in recent times."

American Sociological Association
Sally T. Hillsman, PhD, Executive Officer
"Professor Habib's professional activities and scholarly work are about democracy-building and peaceful social change in the third world, especially Africa and South Africa. We are grateful to Secretary of State Clinton for her wisdom in rejecting the position that our government can bar people like Professor Habib simply because they are thoughtfully critical of policy positions taken by our government. Secretary Clinton has significantly reduced the threat to the conduct and communication of science and scholarship worldwide as an important tool in building and sustaining democracy. The positive impact of this decision will be recognized by scholars and researchers throughout the United States and elsewhere in the world. The elected Council of the American Sociological Association has spoken out on many occasions throughout the years on government actions that have attempted to restrict the freedom of scholars' travel and speech. Council’s defense of our Association’s members to hear Professor Habib was in support of academic freedom, and we are grateful for the support of the ACLU in defending our members’ First Amendment rights. We look forward to hearing Professor Habib at our 105th Annual Meeting in Atlanta. But along with other scholarly societies, the ASA will continue to remain vigilant not only as a matter of principle but also because we are in a unique position to act to defend scientists’ freedom to serve society to the best of their abilities."

American Association of University Professors
Cary Nelson, President
"With the welcome decision to cease excluding Adam Habib and Tariq Ramadan from entering the United States, the State Department puts an end to one of the more shameful episodes in recent American history — the practice of preventing invited foreign scholars from meeting with American faculty and students on the basis of their political beliefs. We may hope that such ideological exclusions are now entirely in our past, that our freedom of association and intellectual exchange will never again be compromised."

Boston Coalition for Palestinian Rights
Sherif Fam, Steering Committee
"We are delighted that reason prevailed, and thank the ACLU for standing up for our First Amendment right to exchange ideas with Professor Habib. We are also grateful to the Secretary of State and the Obama administration for recognizing that blacklisting scholars because of their political views is contrary to the values we hold dear and an affront to the Constitution. We look forward to the opportunity to meet with Professor Habib when he next comes to Boston."