Controversial University of Lethbridge professor to retire this fall

A controversial professor at the University of Lethbridge is retiring this fall.

Anthony Hall was suspended without pay in October 2016 for allegedly promoting conspiracy theories and denying the Holocaust in online articles and videos. He suggested there was a Zionist connection to the 9/11 attacks and that the events of the Holocaust should be up for debate.

Hall was a tenured professor who taught Native American studies, liberal education and globalization over his 26 years at the university.

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The suspension was lifted in November 2017 and Hall returned to work.

The university hadearlier filed a complaint with the Alberta Human Rights Commission.

At the time, the board of governors and the faculty association said in a statement that issues around Hall's activities would be addressed in the context of the faculty handbook, but didn't explain how that would be done.

Hall maintained the issue boiled down to academic freedom and that he should be allowed to promote his work as he sees fit.

B'nai BrithCanada, a Jewish service organziation, issued a statement on Wednesday applauding theretirement.

"This is a monumental and precedent-setting victory for human rights in Canada," said CEO Michael Mostyn.

"B'nai Brith commends our supporters for keeping pressure on the university, the Government of Alberta, and ultimately on Hall himself. Students should not be subjected to Hall's brand of hatred and xenophobia, which clearly have no place in an academic setting."

Hallappeared on the Calgary Eyeopener in October 2016andyou can listen to that interview below:

Calgary Eyeopener7:51Anthony Hall speaks to the Calgary Eyeopener

The University of Lethbridge has asked controversial professor Anthony Hall to resign after complaints over anti-Semitic material posted to his Facebook page. He joins us in studio to discuss the issue.

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