I am very concerned by the apparent degradation of free expression, political debate and academic discourse at UF. I have been following from afar the discussions going on about the Accent Speakers Bureau. It's been troubling to learn that there are some who wish to censor and create vast oversight over the selection of speakers. I have always been proud to be a part of the world's largest student-run speakers bureau. Accent has more than 40 years of history and tradition in bringing insightful, challenging and sometimes even controversial laureates to speak to our students and community.
My fear culminated with the attack on Meyer at Monday's Sen. John Kerry event. Meyer was clearly engaged in political speech and had the right to ask his questions. While his political views may not be shared by all, they were fair questions. Even Kerry recognized Mr. Meyer's questions as "very important." I think it's fair to say Kerry did not himself feel intimidated, threatened or endangered by Mr. Meyer. Further, I know from experience that the guest speaker may choose to engage in a conversation or debate with an audience member, and so there has never been a specific time restraint.
I am sympathetic to the law enforcement officers involved. Law enforcement has a right to have its commands obeyed. Once an officer gives what he or she believes is a lawful command, a person should not resist. But Meyer should never have been seized or manhandled in the first place. What's worse is that Mr. Meyer was already secured by several officers when the infamous Tasering occurred.
We are at a crossroads where we can choose to protect political speech and debate or allow its continued degradation. The choice of where to go from here is ours.
