I write in response to yet another irresponsible Crimson news article, the piece on Friday, April 19, concerning the dropping of criminal charges for want of evidence against one Kaveh Afrasiabi, accused inter alia of threats against Mr. Reza Alavi, research associate of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) and organizer of its Iranian studies seminar. While I have no direct knowledge of the court proceedings in question, we have more than once reviewed Mr. Afrasiabi's wholly unfounded charges of persecution against the Center and its members. We have not wanted to dignify these charges with a response, but because of the unprofessionally misleading nature of the article, I am compelled to respond.

There is not, nor has there ever been, any attempt by anyone at the CMES to do anything to Mr. Afrasiabi except to deny him continuing affiliation after he misrepresented his Harvard affiliation in print. If Mr. Afrasiabi really intends to carry out his longtime threats of legal action against the Center or any of its members, we would welcome that as an opportunity to document his conduct and the baselessness of his charges. We deplore his ongoing harassment of Mr. Alavi, who has done absolutely nothing to merit this. --William A. Graham,   Professor of the History of Religion and Islamic Studies and Director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies