Memo to ABOR Sponsors Concerning Columbia Attacks

The following memo was hand delivered to New York State Senator Frank Padavan and emailed and faxed to the other New York Senate sponsors of #S6336, the Academic Bill of Rights (ABOR) as well as the New York Assembly sponsors of the companion bill #A10098:

MEMO TO: Senator Frank Padavan
FROM: Phil Orenstein
RE: S6336: Academic Bill of Rights

In regards to the recent violent protest to silence an invited guest at Columbia University, I want to ask for your recommendation on making a minor modification or adding a provision to the current New York Academic Bill of Rights, #S6336 to contain a zero-tolerance policy for the disruption of campus speakers and student events in order to protect the fundamental right of free speech on college campuses.

Columbia University Republican Club held a meeting on October 4th where the guest speaker Jim Gilchrist, the founder of the Minuteman Project, and fellow Minuteman Marvin Stewart were physically assaulted and silenced by students from the International Socialist Organization and other radical campus groups. A violent brawl broke out where students kicked and punched the guests and overturned tables and chairs, which was all caught on videotape and distributed on the internet blogosphere for the public to witness. Campus security did nothing to stop the melee, except to cancel the event and escort the guests to safety as the students seized the stage.

President Lee Bollinger and the Columbia administration are notorious for laissez-faire policies dealing with similar past crises where freedoms of speech and opinion have been abused. Due to the mounting public pressure and outrage, including the threat of a lawsuit from Gilchrist and Stewart, Bollinger has made some tough sounding statements of possible disciplinary charges against those students in violation of university rules of conduct. Yet, it remains to be seen whether or not he will expel the student perpetrators or revoke the campus privileges of the radical student groups involved.

The language of the current bill #S6336 is vague on this matter of disruption of campus speakers and clubs, while the original draft which was adapted from legislation in other states, that Brooklyn College Professor Mitchell Langbert and I submitted to the Senate Higher Education Committee, is more direct in this regard:

CURRENT #S6336 & #A10098: That the freedom of speech, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and freedom of conscience of students and student organizations are not infringed upon by administrators, student government organizations or institutional policies, rules or procedures; and That the student's academic institution distributes student fee funds on a viewpoint-neutral basis and maintains a posture of neutrality with respect to substantive political and religious disagreements, differences and opinions.

ORIGINAL DRAFT: An environment conducive to the civil exchange of ideas being an essential component of a free university, the obstruction of invited campus speakers, destruction of campus literature or other effort to obstruct this exchange will not be tolerated.

I would sincerely appreciate your feedback on this proposal. I also want to once again heartily thank you for your honorable efforts to restore academic civility and intellectual diversity to our colleges and universities, which have become increasingly politicized and narrow-minded.