Letter to the Editor: Unpopular views

To the Editor:

Since its inception, the Middle East Center has strived "to reflect the diverse nature of the region in its public programming." In the past, MEC events have been co-sponsored by Penn's Pro-Israel Activism Committee, Temple Students for Israel, the Middle East Forum at Penn and the Israeli Consulate. The Center has co-sponsored pro-Palestine speakers, just as it has co-sponsored pro-Israel speakers. It is inaccurate to suggest that the Middle East Center promotes the views of one side to the exclusion of others.

There has been no small controversy surrounding the speaker that we, the Penn Students for Justice in Palestine, chose to bring to campus last Wednesday.

We chose to bring Eugene Bird for two reasons: his unparalleled experience of Mideast politics gained through 25 years working in the U.S. Foreign Service in Jerusalem, Cairo, Beirut, Jeddah and Bombay and his belief that in order to secure peace in the Middle East, the United States and Israel must change their current course of action.

Opponents of the speaker have argued that the Middle East Center should not have allowed Eugene Bird to speak at an event they co-sponsored because of his views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In effect, they are calling for the Center to "vet" certain speakers in direct contravention of the institution's stated goals of reflecting all perspectives. There will never be universal agreement on a speaker addressing contentious issues, but to remain true to a tradition of intellectual honesty, the right to put forth unpopular views must be protected.

Ahmed Moor

Penn Students for Justice in Palestine

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