Letter to the Editor: Summers' remarks

To the Editor:

In her guest column "Lawrence Summers and free speech," (The Daily Pennsylvanian, 2/24/05) Laura Sullivan derides the wave of criticism of Harvard President Lawrence Summers, who made inflammatory comments in a speech at a diversity conference in January. Trumpeting the virtue of free speech, Ms. Sullivan argues that the "justifications for criticizing" the Harvard president "are profoundly at odds with the democratic ideals of our nation."

Ridiculous! The criticism of Dr. Summers has focused on the content of his message, not his right to speak his mind. Our democratic ideals preserve our right to criticize ideas we find damaging, not protect the reputation of leaders who espouse them. Moreover, Ms. Sullivan is wrong-headed in claiming that the "condemnations of Summers ravage ... the very principle ... of constantly questioning, challenging and thinking." Quite the contrary: The idea that women have the capacity to excel in science is not an age-old dogma, but a modern concept that is still fighting to be accepted.

The offensiveness of Dr. Summers' remarks is rooted in their throwback to an uglier, less meritocratic and more sexist way of thinking. A person has a right to free speech, Harvard University president or not. But in a democratic system, a person, particularly a Harvard University president, will be judged by that speech.

Annalise Paaby

The author is a second-year Biology graduate student

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