As chair of the University Library Committee, I am disappointed by the response of the Faculty Senate to a recent incident that occurred in Alden Library, when several items in a display on art in war were removed. These items depicted one candidate in the forthcoming election in an extremely negative light. The Faculty Senate has criticized the Dean of Libraries for her decision and urged her to restore the materials to public display. During the discussion on the motion, it became apparent that many senators think it is acceptable for the university to take a partisan position in an election. This is a position that I cannot accept.
While it is the right of faculty and students to express their views, the university, and hence the library, should not adopt a partisan stance. The library and university should provide a forum for debate, or other means, for people to express their views. They should also be prepared to protect them from others who would silence them, but the university or the library should not favor one candidate for election over another.
Furthermore, we should also protect the officials at the University who are responsible for ensuring such an open society and the rules of comity required to maintain it. The manner in which the initial request to remove the materials was made, and the subsequent requests pro and con the Dean's actions, should, I believe, be referred to the Professional Relations Committee of Faculty Senate.
-David C. Ingram, a professor of physics, is the chair of the University Library Committee. Send him an e-mail at ingram@ohiou.edu.
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Letter to the Editor
