Columbia Responds to Disruption at Student Event

Eric J. Furda- Vice President for Alumni Relations" wrote:

From: Eric J. Furda- Vice President for Alumni Relations alumni-link@columbia.edu
To: Columbia University Alumni
Subject: Columbia Responds to Disruption at Student Event
Date: Mon, 9 Oct 2006 16:32:43 -0400 (EDT)

This message is being sent to you because of your affiliation with Columbia University at URL http://alumni.columbia.edu.

Dear Columbian,
As you may have heard, last Wednesday night, disruption by student protestors resulted in the termination of an event organized by the Columbia College Republicans in Lerner Hall. The incident quickly received broad media attention.

In order to keep you and other University alumni informed, I have included below a letter President Bollinger sent to the campus community on October 6, 2006. As the letter notes, the administration is investigating the incident and those found responsible for any violations of campus norms of conduct will be held fully accountable. Most importantly, President Bollinger affirms an unwavering commitment to free speech across the political spectrum as one of our core values as a community.

We will be posting updated information as it becomes available at alumni.columbia.edu.
Regards,

Eric J. FurdaVice President for Alumni Relations

PRESIDENT BOLLINGER'S LETTER:

Dear fellow members of the Columbia community,
Columbia University has always been, and will always be, a place where students and faculty engage directly with important public issues. We are justifiably proud of the traditions here of intellectual inquiry and vigorous debate. The disruption on Wednesday night that resulted in the termination of an event organized by the Columbia College Republicans in Lerner Hall represents, in my judgment, one of the most serious breaches of academic faith that can occur in a university such as ours.

Of course, the University is thoroughly investigating the incident, and it is critically important not to prejudge the outcome of that inquiry with respect to individuals. But, as we made clear in our University statements on both Wednesday night and Thursday, we must speak out to deplore a disruption that threatens the central principle to which we are institutionally dedicated, namely to respect the rights of others to express their views.

This is not complicated: Students and faculty have rights to invite speakers to the campus.

Others have rights to hear them. Those who wish to protest have rights to do so. No one, however, shall have the right or the power to use the cover of protest to silence speakers. This is a sacrosanct and inviolable principle.

It is unacceptable to seek to deprive another person of his or her right of _expression through actions such as taking a stage and interrupting a speech. We rightly have a visceral rejection of this behavior, because we all sense how easy it is to slide from our collective commitment to the hard work of intellectual confrontation to the easy path of physical brutishness. When the latter happens, we know instinctively we are all threatened.

We have extensive University policies governing the actions of members of this community with respect to free speech and the conduct of campus events. Administrators began identifying those involved in the incident as it transpired and continue to investigate specific violations of University policies to ensure full accountability by those found to be responsible.

University personnel are also evaluating event management practices that are specifically intended to help event organizers, participants, and protestors maintain a safe environment in which to engage in meaningful and sometimes contentious debate across the spectrum of academic and political issues. These are some of the many steps we intend to take in the weeks ahead to address this matter in our community.

Let me reaffirm: In a society committed to free speech, there will inevitably be times when speakers use words that anger, provoke, and even cause pain. Then, more than ever, we are called on to maintain our courage to confront bad words with better words. That is the hallmark of a university and of our democratic society. It is also one of our central safeguards against the impulses of intolerance that always threaten to engulf our commitment to proper respect for every person.
Sincerely,

Lee C. Bollinger

Columbia University
Office of University Alumni Relations
475 Riverside DriveSuite 402
New York, NY 10115