Meet Jeffrey Cappella:
My name is Jeffrey Damien Cappella. I am a United States Army veteran of over 10 years who was deployed at Ground Zero. I am also a former graduate student of Syracuse University. My attendance at Syracuse University serves as a pretext to the subject matter of my contacting you. You see I have just recently filled an office of civil rights complaint for the institutional abuse / harassment I received at the hands of those within Syracuse university administration as well as some members of the department of public safety during my attendance in the Executive Education Program. Tragically such abuse is not an isolated incidence at Syracuse University. Indeed Syracuse University has been cited numerous times as being the worst university in the United States when it comes to violating students civil rights / freedom of speech, particularly during the time I attended Syracuse University. It should be noted that fellow students whose first amendment rights have been violated by members of Syracuse university administration experienced similar types of academic and professional sanctioning, basement and abuse that defines my case.
The length time regarding how long the discrimination / harassment has occurred does lend itself to a one page letter. That said a brief overview of the more significant acts of discrimination include the violation of my 1rs, 4th and 16th amendment rights, my federal academic protection rights, numerous state federal laws and my rights as a student as outlined by Syracuse University’s operational guidelines. My academic / professional livelihood was targeted and undermined when additional graduate degrees I had worked for had been stolen via denial of degree conferral even after I had been via internal admit been included in the graduate economics program. When pressed by both myself and my legal representation for the reasoning behind my de-matriculation / alleged non acceptance the responses given where evasive and in some cases outright falsehoods. Moreover threats towards myself and my family's physical safety was made. The psychological scarring that has occurred from such mistreatment has undermined my ability to have healthy relationships with institutions of higher learning as now I am always on guard when I attend classes. I cannot tell you how horrible the past 5 years has been.
In support of the above statements are documentation and evidence that directly supports the above statements as well as provides more in depth detail surrounding the harassment / civil rights violations I received since I first attended Syracuse University, increased in both frequency and intensity after I had professionally criticized a ill thought-out ground zero mosque apologist demonstration held on September 11th 2010 and whose effects continue to this day. Evidence contained on the DVD provided in this package includes but is not limited to:
1. Email chains between myself and other member of Syracuse university administration where I tried to continuously resolve a conflict that was not of my making
2. Official documentation from university officials to include a libelous letter that defames my character
3. Legal requests sent by student legal coupled with the evasive / outright dishonest responses from Syracuse legal department
4. Records illustrating my academic performance (my overall g.p.a. was a 3.567 in spite of said abuse)
5. Letters attesting to my character
6. Police reports filed by me in response to being harassed and threatened by members of Syracuse university / department of public safety
7. Video footage of some of the key discussions where I was directly harassed by members of Syracuse university administration and department of public safety. Indeed in one conversation I was told by a Syracuse university administration official that even though I am a “man of principle” that there is nothing I can do regarding the abuse.
Please understand that this is only a preview of the wealth of evidence I possess. Moreover thought-out the evidence provided you will see that in the face of such abuse I tried consistently to resolve said conflict amicably. At every turn my efforts where met with increasing amount of institutional animosity, sanctioning and harassment.
Keeping the above events in mind I want it to be known that my criticism of the harassment, threats and unprofessional behavior that I and other veterans / students suffered on the behalf of some members within the department of public safety does not translate into general criticism of those agencies, their mission or the patriotism almost assuredly held by the vast majority of those personal that work within them. Indeed I would contend that a vast majority of individuals in the United States law enforcement and intelligence agencies are stalwart patriots who work tirelessly to ensure that Americans are as secure as they can be in an increasingly damn dangerous world. I both as a United States soldier / veteran as well as someone trained in intelligence and counter terrorism have the absolute utmost respect for the United States intelligence community and law enforcement in general. Similar to the caveat surrounding my position surrounding the United States intelligence agencies and law enforcement, I am not to harm Syracuse University, grandstand or seek disproportional compensation for myself. Rather my goal is to report such abusive events and their negative effects to both myself and my family in the hopes that said abuse will not be experienced by fellow veterans who attend Syracuse University in the future. To put it another way, as is stated on the wall in Maxwell’s foyer to leave the city in better condition then when I received it.
Finally as I have maintained throughout this ordeal, my point is not that others cannot voice their opinion, even as hurtful as those points may be. Rather my point is that equitable consideration be given to all points and not just those that happen to coincide with the ideology held by members of a universities administration and or faculty. That said I simply cannot in good conscience stay silent anymore surrounding the negative impact the abuse I have received on the behalf of members within Syracuse University’s administration has caused to myself, my fellow veterans and other students. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me anytime at 716-235-6898.
Thank you
Jeffrey Damien Cappella
End Notes / Cited Sources
[ii] http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2010/08/poll-nearly-70-of-americans-op.html
[v] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/31/nyregion/31mosque.html?_r=1
[vi] http://thefire.org/case/845.html
[vii]http://www.thefire.org/syracuse-university-makes-list-of-worst-schools-for-free-speech/
[viii] Top cop at Syracuse University, Mike Rathbun, suspended from duty