To the Editor:
As former students of Paul Kennedy’s, and now fellow members of the historical profession, we wish to emphatically agree with those who have noted his commitment to serving the Yale community and the world beyond. While we do not yet have all the facts about the automobile incident reported in the News (“Kennedy charged with DUI,” 2/7), one fact is indisputably clear: For more than 20 years, Kennedy has displayed extraordinary devotion to teaching and mentoring legions of students. As his TAs and doctoral students, we witnessed first-hand how often Kennedy went beyond the call of duty in assisting people in need. At universities across America and abroad, we strive to follow his example.
When Professor Kennedy has his day in court, the larger court of public opinion will likely focus on the outcome of these proceedings. But as historians, we insist not only that he be treated fairly, but that no one forget his service to history.
Lucy Chester ’96 GRD ’02
University of Colorado, Boulder
Matthew Connelly GRD ’98
Columbia University
Richard Drayton GRD ’93
University of Cambridge
Jay Howard Geller GRD ’01
University of Tulsa
Will Gray GRD ’99
Purdue University
William I. Hitchcock GRD ’93
Temple University
Talbot Imlay GRD ’98
Universite Laval
Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet GRD ’97
University of Pennsylvania
Mark Lawrence GRD ’98
University of Texas, Austin
Fredrik Logevall GRD ’93
Cornell University
Fernande Raine GRD ’00
Harvard University
David Schimmelpenninck van der Oye ’79 GRD ’97
Brock University
Jennifer Siegel, ’90 GRD ’98
Ohio State University
David R. Stone ’97
Kansas State University
Jeremi Suri GRD ’01
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Vincent Viaene GRD ’96
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
Geoffrey Wawro GRD ’92
University of North Texas
Salim Yaqub GRD ’99
University of California, Santa Barbara
Feb. 14, 2006