Ward Churchill and his controversial academic legacy

Ward Churchill has been a vivid critic of the use of violence. He has argued for an end to violence from all the parties involved. However, in his book, "On the Justice of Roosting Chickens" he discusses the way in which the United States has been using violence as a means to conduct politics. The most recent event that enabled him to develop his thesis on the need to stop violence was the war in Iraq, viewed as one of the most tragic events in recent history. This impression was not necessarily constructed from the perspective given by the number of victims of the war, or the casualties suffered by both sides, but rather from the perspective of the issues it entangles. He argues in his book that the violence the U.S. promotes, regardless of the reason for which it follows this course will eventually come to have serious repercussions on the peace and security of the nation.

One of the most important chapters of the book, from the point-of-view of the subject at hand, is "Some people push back." It can be said that the fragment in itself embodies the essence of the author's point-of-view, as well as major arguments in support of his statement.

Ward Churchill's thesis regarding the role and effects of violence in shaping the framework for peace takes into account some of the major conflicts in which the U.S. was engage in the last decades. In this sense, he argues that the death of JF Kennedy was in fact a result of the violent politics conducted by the U.S. during the Cold War. Also mentioning the war in Vietnam and the one in Iraq, he considers that the violence used in determining the peace in different regions of the world will have negative effects on the way in which these areas will eventually retaliate and strike back in revenge creating a violent space in the United States.

His main arguments relate to the historical experiences of the U.S. As well as the ones of the countries around the world.

In this sense, his first argument regards the Iraqi war and the "1991 U.S. "surgical" bombing of their country's water purification and sewage facilities" in which almost half a million children died during or after the events. He considers that such events stroke back and violence breeds violence. In support of such an argument, he presents the experience of the Nazi Germans who are rightfully considered to have been mass killers. He argues that the guilt often pointed to the German people for the rise of Nazism must be seen from the perspective of what the people allowed its leaders to do, "do in their name." Therefore, the American people must as well be guilty of the violence its leaders and soldiers are exporting across the world.

Another argument pointing the finger to the guilt of the public in terms of the violence the American government is exporting and which will be the reason for the return of violence in the U.S. is the lack of interest shown by the public. In this sense, the author argues that the American public disregarded the massive atrocities that were taking place in Iraq, making reference to the issue of the half a million children dead. He concludes that the public as well as the political scene viewed the Iraqi and all the peoples against which they engage in war to be a "perpetrator."

Another argument that supports the idea that violence will come back to haunt the American states is the fact that, despite the general acknowledged idea that terrorism began the new war at the moment, Churchill argues that this war against the East was begun by the western side, centuries earlier and the Western part has maintain this conflict status.

His conclusion is that "Had it not been for these evils, the counterattacks of September 11 would never have occurred." Moreover, he argues that a continuation of this policy will only increase the degree of violence that will affect the United States.

Considering his conclusions it can be argued that part of his arguments would suggest a disagreement with certain issues that have affected dramatically the United States and its foreign policy. In this sense, indeed, the death of the Iraqi children was a deep tragedy but they were the result of an intervention that had come in retaliation of Iraq's aggression of Kuwait. Should the intervention not have taken place, Kuwaitis would have suffered extensively.