Freedom of Expression Needs to Thrive at MIT

   The Tech_ received this letter addressed to Salman Rushdie._
   
   The members of the Student Association for Freedom of Expression would
   like to express our warm welcome to you, our newest, albeit honorary,
   member of the MIT community. More than anyone on campus, you know of
   the dangers of censorship. By having been forced to stake your life on
   what you believe, you have become a symbol of the fight for freedom of
   expression around the globe. In honoring you, MIT has expressed at
   least a desire to reward those who stand up in the face of censorship.
   
   Sadly, those rewards are not afforded to the other members of this
   Institution. According to a new harassment policy, which each of your
   fellow members in the MIT community must now follow, the expression of
   offensive ideas is now discouraged, and may even be actionable under
   MIT's definition of harassment. The newly published guide tells us to
   avoid putting the right to free expression and the desire to not be
   offended to a balancing test. It advises that "people who learn they
   have offended others by their manner of expression should consider
   immediately stopping the offense and apologizing." The
   administration's incapacity to uniformly interpret advice from
   warning, or discouragement from punishment has been well documented,
   most recently in the Nov. 30 issue of _The Tech_. Coupled with such
   problems the dangers such a broad policy presents are too numerous to
   list here. We urge you to read the harassment guide for yourself and
   judge its attempt to deal with freedom of expression (particularly
   outlined on page 18).
   
   Had you been forced to publish in such an atmosphere, one can only
   wonder if MIT would have encouraged you to remove the possibly
   offensive material from _The Satanic Verses_. Even The Boston Globe
   (Nov. 30) contained a letter from a Muslim graduate student of MIT who
   was offended by what he called "Combat Zone colloquialisms" and of
   "injuring the deepest love of others." The policy makes actionable
   comments both "on or off campus." According to their own publication,
   MIT would be forced to resolve their objections, should these
   detractors wish to make a claim of harassment against you.
   
   It is not our mission to either condone or condemn your opinions or
   those of your detractors. It is only our fear that controversial
   opinions such as yours, will now be suppressed by the (often very
   real) objections of other campus members. As you are aware, many of
   the most provocative and noteworthy ideas are deeply offensive to a
   great many people. Attempting to remove these offenses cannot avoid
   being hostile to intellectual freedom.
   
   Having lived a good portion of your life waging a personal battle for
   free expression, you are closer to the front than most. You know what
   is at stake, and how precarious such freedoms are. As we offer our
   support for your struggle, we also ask for your solidarity with our
   own. Help us in urging MIT to renew its defense of freedom of
   expression. A public statement from one whom the MIT establishment has
   so honored would go a long way towards convincing them of their
   hypocrisy. Help us make MIT a place where free expression thrives, not
   a place that selectively encourages some forms of expression while
   discouraging others.
   
   Vernon Imrich G
   
   _and 5 others
   
   Student Association for Freedom of Expression
   

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Copyright 1993 by The Tech. All rights reserved.
This story was published on  Friday,  December 3, 1993.
Volume  113, Number 62
The story was printed on page  4.
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