George,

Every since the news broke last Monday that NPR news analyst Juan Williams had made an anti-Muslim statement on the O'Rielly Factor and his subsequent termination two day later by NPR, I have I been bombarded with inquiries from people wanting to know what Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson have to say about the Williams-NPR rendezvous.

First, let us take a look at what Williams said on the"O'Reilly Show. He said: "But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried, I get nervous." Last Wednesday NPR CEO Vivian Schiller announced the termination of William's contract.

I don't know what Sharpton and Jackson have to say, if anything publicly, about this matter. I respect them both and I supported them in their presidential campaigns. I support them in their right to remain silent on this matter, if they choose to do so. Williams too has contributed positively in advancing civil rights in America.

As an African American who was intimately involved in civil rights as far back as over fifty years ago when I participated in the Montgomery Bus Boycott, I have a position on the Williams-NPR controversy.

I do not consider NPR' termination of Williams' contract to be a free speech issue. I agree with NPR that William's statement is anti-Muslim. I have known some non-blacks who felt toward me the same way Williams feels about Muslims, i.e., that my presence worried and made them nervous. These feelings are based on thoughts, beliefs and attitudes. Former President George W. Bush acting on "I believe" there are weapons of mass destruction in Iraq has resulted in the deaths of 4,400 American soldiers, over 100,000 Iraqi civilians (some estimates are 8 times higher), $745 billion spent, and still counting.

Williams is free to express his anti-Muslim views on Fox and other kindred spirit media outlets but NPR has acted properly in cutting him loose from that network. Americans need NPR" to maintain a non-partisan, objective and informative approach in progamming. The termination of Williams on NPR was overdue.

Unlike Wlliams, I do not become worried or nervous when I am on a plane and see a person in Muslim garb. I live in a city where there is a member of the City Couoncil who wears a turban. He s accepted and appreciated by citizens. I feel the same way about people wearing Muslim garb.

Obviously, Wililams knows that a Muslim can remove his garb, if he chooses to, but an American of African descent cannot change his skin color. Most people accept their identities without having a desire to change in order to gain the approval of other people. Early in my life I learned from Jews that they want others to know that they are Jews even when others might not be aware of their ethnicity.

Williams wlil llikely be paid well for his expanded employment at Fox. He is a good fit for Fox. However, many Americans will not be silent when newspersons make disparaging remarks about others, regardless as to to who employs them. I salute NPR for doing the right thing in terminating Williams and maintaining their values. And for being an alternative to "foxie" programming.

Uriah J. Fields (Electronic mail, October 24, 2010)