To the Editor:
I am very concerned about your letter to Oberlin students in the wake of Kwame Ture's speech on Monday. In your first letter, you asked the community to "join in the assertion of this tradition (Oberlin College's) of academic and civic freedom and continue to foster a climate in which it is cherished." I agreed with the tone and content of your first letter, and believe that you acted rightly by addressing the concerns of Oberlin students.
I take issue with your second letter. I appreciate that by its writing you are exercising your right to free speech that each of us is entitled to, however, I find that your position warrants a broader appraisal of a controversial situation than you gave. I came to this school expecting to have my views challenged. I have placed myself in an arena where it is my responsibility to be scrupulous and self-examining. I expect you, as the president and leader of this institution, to make such an environment possible.
In your second letter you treat Kwame Ture's visit as a sword that has inflicted a deep wound on this campus. True, Mr. Ture's speech is one that is very disturbing in its racial content, and I find many of the things he said to be deplorable. His speech is an opportunity for us each to decide what we believe. I am glad that Mr. Ture came to Oberlin. His appearance has enriched the intellectual debate, and raised questions that will be discussed for some time to come. The visit has also allowed us to see that we can come through hateful speech and strongly differing ideas intact and firm in our beliefs. And if our beliefs are challenged, so much the better.
Copyright © 1996, The Oberlin Review.
Volume 124, Number 18; March 15, 1996
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