A University of 蜜柚直播 forum on civility and free speech will bring together representatives from the city, the university and several religious communities.
Although the UA has often hosted discussions on these topics, separate incidents last year targeting the Islamic Center of 蜜柚直播, 901 E. First St., and several Jewish students sparked this year鈥檚 panel.
Panelists include Kathy Adams Riester, the UA鈥檚 associate dean of students; Toni Massaro, former dean of the UA鈥檚 James E. Rogers College of Law and a Regents鈥 Professor who holds the Milton O. Riepe Chair in Constitutional Law; former U.S. Rep. Ron Barber of the Fund for Civility, Respect and Understanding; Rabbi Samuel Cohon of Temple Emanu-El; and Kamel Didan, the former vice chairman of the Islamic Center鈥檚 board of trustees. City Councilman Steve Kozachik will moderate.
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鈥淲hen we have done First Amendment and civility events in the past, it has been campus-focused and initiated by people on campus,鈥 Riester said. This panel brings a community perspective, she added.
The panel comes after a conflict between the Islamic Center and the surrounding high-rise student apartments, with student residents throwing liquor bottles and other objects from balconies and shouting at passers-by. In an unrelated incident last year, members of the fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon barged into an apartment and harassed the Jewish students inside, the Star reported.
Meetings including apartment managers, neighborhood representatives such as the Campus Community Relations Committee, the 蜜柚直播 Police Department, the university, the Islamic Center and Kozachik have led to the improvement of the situation by requiring greater accountability from student residents.
The most recent meeting earlier this month was positive. 鈥淲e patted each other on the backs,鈥 Didan said.
Kozachik sees this forum on free speech as an extension of that progress.
鈥淲hen you talk about speech, it could be from the desecration of someone鈥檚 holy book to burning a flag to handing out KKK fliers,鈥 he said. 鈥淭he discussion will be, 鈥楬ow do we embrace what we stand for in this country in terms of speech and freedoms, versus propriety?鈥欌
Massaro added that with new students coming each year, this has to be an annual discussion.
鈥淭here are always issues where people feel vulnerable to particularly offensive or vulgar and degrading speech,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 always a tough balance between our interest in allowing that weighed against the person鈥檚 protection.鈥