VOL 22 / 4
TOP STORIES
Can you speak your mind at UMD?
A few days ago, a college student was standing in front of John Kerry at a college in Florida and questioning him in regards to his possible involvement in a secret society during college. Several moments later, the student was being arrested despite Kerry's vocal requests to let him answer the question. Just moments after he was escorted from the microphone, that same student was on the ground being handcuffed and tazed in the middle of a crowded room.
While the student may have been overreacting and being somewhat melodramatic at first, there is no question that the police in the situation were also overreacting. The only difference between the two were that the police had tazers. UMD students can view a video of the incident on the Statesman's editorial blog site at umdstatesman.blogspot.com.
Colleges are institutions of learning. Academic debate and the exchange of thoughts, opinions and the generation of new ideas should be commonplace. These event in Florida, however, beg the question of how much that exchange is really allowed to happen anymore.
From political and ideological differences to issues of race, religion and socio-economic backgrounds, there is no question the wide variety of perspectives and approaches to the issues we discuss in our classrooms and halls on campus can cause tension. While this example is certainly an extreme one, we do wonder how free students feel they can speak their mind.
For this reason, we are opening up the editorial pages of the statesman's blog site to the students and staff of UMD. Please join the discussion, and tell us: Can people truly speak their mind at UMD?
Join the discussion at
www.umdstatesman.blogspot.com
