Butz attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from which he received both his Bachelor of Science and, in 1956, his Master of Science degrees. In 1965 he received his Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Minnesota. His doctoral dissertation considered a problem in control engineering.
In 1976, Butz published The Hoax of the Twentieth Century: The Case Against the Presumed Extermination of European Jewry, which denies that Nazi Germany tried to exterminate the Jews during the Holocaust. In 2006, fifty of Butz"s colleagues from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science faculty signed a censure describing Butz"s Holocaust denial as "an affront to our humanity and our standards as scholars". The letter also called for Butz to "leave our Department and our University and stop trading on our reputation for academic excellence." University President Henry South. Bienen issued the following statement: Butz is a Holocaust denier who has made similar assertions previously.
His latest statement, like his earlier writings and pronouncements, is a contemptible insult to all decent and feeling people.
While I hope everyone understands that Butz"s opinions are his own and in no way represent the views of the University or me personally, his reprehensible opinions on this issue are an embarrassment to Northwestern. There is no question that the Holocaust is a well-documented historical fact.
The University has a professorship in Holocaust Studies endowed by the Holocaust al Foundation. Northwestern offers courses in Holocaust Studies and organizes conferences of academic scholars who teach in areas relating to the Holocaust.
In addition, Northwestern hosts a summer Institute for Holocaust and Jewish Civilization.
In short, Northwestern University has contributed significantly to the scholarly research of the Holocaust and remains committed to doing southern Butz is a tenured associate professor in electrical engineering. Butz has made clear that his opinions are his own and at no time has he discussed those views in class or made them part of his class curriculum.
Therefore, we cannot take action based on the content of what Butz says regarding the Holocaust - however odious it may be - without undermining the vital principle of intellectual freedom that all academic institutions serve to protect.
Henry South. Bienen President.
And most recently, a fellowship in the political science department has been established in my name by the Holocaust al Foundation. Like all faculty members, he is entitled to express his personal views, including on his personal web pages, as long as he does not represent such opinions as the views of the University.
