Complaint filed against UCF professor accused of supporting Muslim hate group

ORLANDO, Fla. — A professor is facing a formal complaint for how he teaches students at the University of Central Florida Wednesday.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations claims Jonathan Matusitz, a UCF professor, supports an anti-Muslim hate group.

It said in the letter the professor is a member of Act for America, a group that is against Muslims.

Matusitz told Channel 9 he's spoken to the organization before.

The letter asks UCF to review the professor's teachings.

A video of Matusitz was posted on YouTube.

"So why? Why do so many Muslims relative to other religions want to kill us? The answer is easy. Very easy. It's seven letters: culture," Matusitz said in the video.

His strong language is under scrutiny.

"Imagine that symbolic interaction that from the cradle until you're an adult teaches you to hate," Matusitz said in the video.

CAIR said in the letter Matusitz's teachings are inaccurate, anti-Muslim bigotry and hostility in the form of hate speech toward Islam and Muslims.

"They've never been in my classes. They don't know the context of my classes," Matusitz told WFTV's Ryan Hughes Wednesday.

The professor said he teaches a course on terrorism and communication and wrote a book about it.

Matusitz claims he backs all his lectures up with one thing: statistics.

"I think they're wrong. I think they're afraid of truth-tellers and they want to stifle free speech," Matusitz said.

Students Channel 9 spoke to said they're open to free thoughts and ideas in the classroom.

"As long as they're not violating anything - it's freedom of speech," said student A.P. Alcuis.

It's the reason why Matusitz isn't backing down.

"Do you stand behind everything you say in your class?" asked Hughes.

"Yes. Why would I make a claim that I don't believe in?" Matusitz said.

WFTV reached out to UCF for a comment.

"Dr. Matusitz expressed his opinion, which is his right. He was not speaking on behalf of the university and we do not endorse his views," said UCF spokesperson Grant Heston via email.

WFTV