[wvns] North Carolina School Invites Anti-Islam Speaker
NC: PRINCIPAL: SPEAKER GUIDELINES BEING REVIEWED
Yonat Shimron
News and Observer
http://www.newsobserver.com/102/story/548271.html
In a letter sent to students of Enloe High School on Wednesday,
Principal Beth Cochran said teachers and administrators must exercise
discretion and sound judgment in inviting guest speakers, but she
stopped short of apologizing for a visit by a Christian evangelist who
denounced Islam.
The letter said the school system was investigating a visit by Kamil
Solomon, a Raleigh evangelist. Students said Solomon encouraged them
to convert to Christianity and handed out pamphlets, including one
titled "Do Not Marry A Muslim."
"Guest speakers can provide a wonderful enrichment opportunity for our
students by bringing unique personal experiences and various points of
view that can significantly enhance our students' education," Cochran
wrote.
But she said the school was reviewing its guidelines on inviting
speakers to ensure that "their presentations and materials are
appropriate for our school environment."
Solomon's visit to classes of Robert Escamilla, a social studies
teacher, created a furor among students and parents who called it an
attempt to proselytize to students, which the First Amendment prohibits.
Jennifer Rudinger, the director of the state chapter of the American
Civil Liberties Union, said the letter didn't go far enough.
She said the ACLU had asked the school to pledge that such events
would not recur. The letter, she said, gave no such assurances.
But at least one parent said he thought Cochran's letter was an
improvement over her initial response.
"I think she's hopefully on the right course," said Greg Kaszycki,
whose daughter, Alyssa, was in the classroom when Solomon spoke.
Kaszycki said he felt that the students were owed an explanation, too.
"I don't think the students fully understand why it was wrong," he
said. "That's who really needs to be straightened out about this."
Staff writer Yonat Shimron can be reached at 829-4891
or yonat.shimron @ newsobserver.com.
===
ISLAM, FREE SPEECH AND ENLOE
Learning from an anti-Muslim presentation at a public high school
Anna Bigelow
News and Observer
http://www.newsobserver.com/559/story/548217.html
RALEIGH - The uproar about Kamil Solomon's appearance at Enloe High
School, where he gave a speech and distributed literature hostile to
Islam, may be a good thing.
Although as a professor teaching Islam I am certainly not happy to
hear of the kinds of materials the students were given, time was when
such a talk would have been acceptable, even unremarkable. So I hope
that the outcry indicates two things.
First, I hope it indicates a rising knowledge among non-Muslims in the
region that, like all other faiths, Islam has a variety of adherents,
most of whom reject fanaticism, terrorism and hate. Indeed, many
parents and students spoke up against the talk's content.
Second, the reaction from the local and national Muslim communities
was swift, offering concrete responses and a clear denunciation both
of the speaker and the kind of extremist Muslims that Solomon had
described. This coordinated and direct action by individuals and
groups such as the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) and the
Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) may represent an
increasing efficacy in countering negative stereotypes about Islam.
Perhaps I overestimate the growing awareness of average citizens about
Islam. It is true that Solomon's Web site contains numerous comments
he claims were sent in support of his view that most terrorists are
Muslim, and of his warning to girls not to marry Muslim men. Yet
letters to the editor and the coverage on local news and radio focused
less on the actual claims made by the speaker -- patently false -- and
more on the question of free speech in the schools. Are students in an
assembly or classroom a captive audience and therefore unable to
exercise their own freedom of expression? The fact that much of the
debate centered on the free speech issue, rather than the inflammatory
material itself, is hopeful.
• • •
Promoting free speech does not mean we abdicate moral judgment. It
does require us to engage opposing views productively, learning from
each incident when our shared public space becomes less comfortable.
Although I do not believe this speaker was appropriate or informative,
as citizens high school students must learn how to interact with and
evaluate a range of positions, and should not be exposed only to
individuals with whom they agree.
In my own classrooms I am concerned that students should gain both
critical thinking skills and knowledge about the course content.
Still, I do not invite people to speak knowing that they will present
inaccurate or incendiary material. There is little to be learned from
such an event, and much potential for harm.
I do not know how prepared the Enloe students were to make sound
judgments about the quality and veracity of the talk. I hope that if
nothing else the controversy will ensure that they will hear balancing
voices and be better able to draw their own conclusions.
• • •
The role of the local and national Islamic organizations that have
become involved is an interesting and important development. In recent
years we have heard a repeated demand for the voices of "moderate
Islam" to speak out against extremists. Yet when mainstream Muslims do
speak out, it is rarely deemed newsworthy. Although "Islam" has no
single voice, the Muslims who addressed this incident include just the
kind of mainstream, regular people concerned about their place in
American society that many media pundits and non-Muslim citizens claim
to be seeking.
Too often Muslim voices denouncing terrorism are not heard outside of
Muslim circles. Sometimes this is a problem of language, sometimes a
question of access. It is not because such denunciations have not been
made -- they were either not heard or ignored. Indeed, while CAIR is
accused by some of being an apologist for terrorism, its role in
organizing and publicizing a legal ruling or fatwa against terrorism
endorsed by well over 300 national organizations, mosques and clerics
is rarely heralded.
That fatwa against terrorism came out in July 2005, yet many
non-Muslims still seem unaware of its existence.
The fact that in the Enloe case the voices of local and national
Muslims were heard may indicate increased skill in negotiating the
system and, I hope, that the system is learning to hear and represent
their voices. Muslim groups and individuals were widely quoted in the
news media and publicly offered their services (as have I) to the
school to provide programming that will help give the students the
materials they need to make sound judgments of their own.
I hope that Enloe will avail itself of these opportunities, and that
other schools will use this unfortunate event as a chance to develop
students' capacities for critical thinking about the issues that are
essential to the growth of responsible, informed citizens.
(Anna Bigelow is an assistant professor in the Department of
Philosophy and Religion at N.C. State University.)
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