SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- An upstate New York college is being urged to cancel a speaking engagement by a man who has compared victims of the World Trade Center attacks to Nazis.

Hamilton College has invited Ward Churchill to take part in a panel discussion next month. Churchill is chairman of the ethnic studies department at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, he called the victims "little Eichmanns," comparing them to Adolf Eichmann, the architect of Hitler's plan to eradicate Europe's Jews.

In his essay, the professor said the victims worked for a "mighty engine of profit to which the military dimension of U.S. policy has always been enslaved." He also argued that the terrorists who carried out the attacks "manifested the courage of their convictions" and "when you push people around, some people push back. There is justice in such symmetry."

Hamilton College is a liberal arts school about 40 miles east of Syracuse. Although officials have gotten a significant number of angry phone calls, letters and e-mails, Churchill is still invited.

In Colorado, where Churchill also has come under renewed criticism, CU officials said his views don't represent the opinions of anyone affiliated with the university but that he had a right to express them. On Thursday, two Colorado congressmen called on Churchill to apologize.

Rep. Mark Udall said freedom of speech does not excuse teachers or professors for uttering nonsense and calling it instruction.

"The professor's remarks go beyond dissent. His interpretation of what happened on 9/11 is factually inaccurate, and his defamation of the attacks' victims is indefensible and reprehensible," said Udall. "It blames America first, and it fails to bring any rationality or academic value to understanding Islamic societies, the root causes of terrorism, and the threat that Islamic fundamentalists pose to America and other countries -- including those with Muslim majorities. The professor has every right to say what he wishes, but if he expects to be taken seriously, his remarks need to be based on facts and reflect a better understanding of both our country and its enemies.

"Over 3,000 innocent -- yes, innocent -- people died in the Sept. 11 attacks. We owe it to them and their families to investigate events leading up to and including Sept. 11, and we must have a responsible debate about national policy and strategies to fight terrorism. And Mr. Churchill owes the 9/11 families an apology," Udall said.