The Daily Plan-it / Dean of Students Blog, Columbia J-school

[Another in our “Notes From…” series - short notes by volunteers summarizing various events around the school, to help those of us who didn’t/couldn’t attend. Watch for several other “Notes From…” throughout the year. If you have one, send it in! Or let us know in advance that you’d like to do one; or after the event, too. You can see the master list of all the “Notes From” items here.]

On Sunday, Sept. 23, 2007, a day before the controversial talk on campus by Iranian president Ahmadinejad, two J-schoolers covered the event below.

Protests Start Early Against Ahmadinejad’s Columbia Speech
By Mohammad Al-Kassim (malkassim at gmail) and Anup Kaphle (anupkaphle at gmail)

[ See a slideshow of photos from the event ]

SUNDAY, SEPT. 23, 2007: About 50 people, including local politicians, faculty and students gathered at the university entrance to express their anger and discontent over Columbia University’s decision to invite Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak at the World Leaders Forum on Monday.

Referring to Ahmadinejad as “madman” and “Hitler-wannabe,” the group also asked New Yorkers to gather at the university to rally against Ahmadinejad on Monday.

“I call on New Yorkers to make the life of Ahmadinejad miserable when he comes here tomorrow,” said Dov Hikind, New York State Assemblyman. “Let’s give him an experience he will never forget, and maybe never come back again to this great city.”

“The United Nations is open for all mobsters and killers and murders, we can’t do anything about that,” Hikind added. “But do we have to invite him to our community?” he asked criticizing the university’s decision to allow him to speak on campus.

The group also criticized Columbia University President Lee Bollinger for his decision, calling him a “shame” in many references. The university has come under additional criticism after John Coatsworth, dean of the School of International and Pubic Affairs, said that even Hitler would be invited to speak at Columbia, if he was willing to engage in a debate with the faculty and students.

“This institution is making a mockery of civilized discourse,” said James Gennaro, New York City Councilman.

Several groups are organizing rallies tomorrow in front of the university to protest against Ahmadinejad and what many call the university’s decision to give a platform for “the madman’s hate speech.” One of the rallies is being organized by AMCHA - the Coalition for Jewish Concerns and rabbinical students at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah.

But David Fichman, a student at the university’s School of General Studies, said that this is more than just a Jewish-Israeli issue. “This is a gay, lesbian, bisexual issue, this is a woman’s issue, this is human rights and minority rights issue,” he said. “Everyone is affected by Ahmadinejad in Iran and it will flow over to rest of the world.”

Aton Eller, who identified himself as a prospective MBA student at Columbia said that Columbia is making a mistake by inviting a murderer of his own people.

“He is a terrorist and he is here to spread hatred,” he said. “He has threatened the lives of Americans and Israelis.”

But there were some students present who believed that Ahmadinejad should be allowed to engage in a dialog with Columbia faculty and students. President Bollinger, who was not present at the rally, has said that the event will not be cancelled despite protests from several groups, including the New York City Council. He described the event as part of “Columbia’s long-standing tradition of serving as a major forum for robust debate, especially on global issues.”

In 2006, the university dropped plans for a speech by Ahmadinejad due to security and logistical problems. The decision came after a Jewish activist group strongly criticized the university over its invitation to the Iranian president, who has called the Holocaust a “myth” and said Israel should be “wiped off the map.”

But last Friday, Bollinger met with some students and said that Ahmadinejad has agreed to answer questions from students about any subject including on Israel and the Holocaust.

Carol Holmes, a sophomore, said that president Bollinger’s decision to bring Ahmadinejad on campus allows students like her to partake in a dialog about critical issues from around the world.

“He has a right to be here,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if we hate what he has to say or what he does in his own country to his own people. Nobody is saying we agree with that.”

[ See a slideshow of photos from the event ]