Let me begin by saying that my belief in the right to free expression and in the beauty of diversity in opinion, especially those of the political kind, is strong. However, there are times when the argument to grant such freedom without any rational and reasonable guidelines is, simply, wrong. The right to freedom of speech is one of the most endeared to me and is one of the reasons to feel proud of being an American.

That said, I am writing this to protest inviting Ann Coulter to NMU. She should not be a reason to have a campus event, especially one that is supported by dollars paid by people who reject having them used in that way.

I am not only offended by Ms. Coulter’s bigotry and repulsed by her deliberate selection of words to only arouse a crowd’s attention, I am deeply saddened that those who invited her did not examine her public pronouncements carefully enough (I would be crushed if they had and found nothing wrong).

Ms. Coulter’s attitude can only inflame those who have (rightly or not) developed a fear that we are not launching a war on terrorism, but on Islam itself. It is clear to me that Ms. Coulter cannot make a distinction between a Muslim and an Arab, so I know that she doesn’t have the capacity to make a distinction between a Muslim and a fundamentalist extremist with a political agenda and a dark soul. There are so many conservative Republicans with far more scholarly stature and intellectual integrity to choose from. Unless we do not care about smearing the reputation of good Republicans just to pack a crowd.

Mohey Mowafy,
health professor