To the Editor and UVM Campus, As an eager freshman you walk into your first Gen Ed. Introductory to Anthropology class to hear your professor say, “1/2 of you will fail. ” Now I don’t mind a good challenge, but this statement was all about establishing power. Many of you know the truth about Professor Pastner and remain quiet about it. It’s time to speak up. After witnessing the final command performance of Professor Pastner, Nicholas C. Bewley wrote Pastner’s impassioned article, but Nick is no journalism major. He got conned by a man who’s been wielding power for a long time and finally quit in his carefully scripted ” blaze of glory.” Pastner fed quotes to a freshman who bought the act but never saw the show. It’s time to set the record straight. It was never just about ” the girl ” or her mother; it was all about Power.UVM is a University that advocates a strong support of rights, constantly giving appreciation days for all groups of people. The challenge of the large institution is not to support every cause, but to support every individual student paying for an education. In Brewley’s article, he focuses on the issue of the Abenaki tribe being the problem. In no way was the issue presented the actual problem. Professor Pastner unfairly used his power over a student in his class, just he as he had done to others, only “the girl” stood up for herself. My question to Professor Pastner is, if he was so confident in content of the material he was teaching, then why would it matter who was in his class, including a mother of any student? Did he have something to be afraid of? Would a parent challenge the constant exercising of power over students younger than he was? What allows a professor to wield such power? How dangerous is the power of the grade in the hands of a man willing to protect what he considers his right to say what he wants and set the rules? To student and professional advocates of Professor Pastner, demand and read the transcripts of the profession review board. Read the truth that can’t be printed. This could have been you! This was never about one girl or one issue; this was about a student that finally stood up to a man who felt so confident in the insulation of UVM that he could say and do what he wanted. Freshman year I dropped Pastner’s class and avoided the battle. “The girl” stood strong against Pastner. She stayed, she stood up, and she was attacked. The law of silence must stop; the truth must be told. This was all about power. After my freshman year at UVM, I transferred. When enrolled in a Gen Ed course such as Anthropology, the point is usually to introduce a student to a field they have never seen. I saw first hand that Pastner was not about holding high standards, something that I see as a challenge, but just to hold the power that he wanted over others.