attack on academic freedom at UM

December 5th
Kathryn Babayan

The following constitutes my response to the recent accounts given by
the UM student organization The American Movement for Israel (AMI),
Guest Speaker Professor Raymond Tanter, and Senior Information Officer
Diane Brown, of the Office of the Associate Vice President for
Facilities and Operations, as they were reported in the Ann Arbor News
(Dec. 2nd, 2006) and the Michigan Daily (Dec. 4th, 2006).

The rights of the speaker Professor Tanter to lecture on Thursday,
November 30th, were not abused as has been claimed by him, AMI, and
others.  Certainly the AMI’s own video recording of the event has
documented the facts:  he gave his ten-minute threadbare speech on the
“Islamic fascist ideology of Iran,” and then took questions, and
comments from audience members, though mockingly and condescendingly.

It was in fact the rights and personal security of dissenting audience
members that were egregiously abused that evening. According to the
university’s policies on the freedom of speech and artistic
expression,
event organizers, guest speakers, and campus police cannot determine at
will or arbitrarily what constitutes “undue interference” at
university public events attended by diverse and, at times, contrary political
opinions.  According to the University of Michigan’s standard
guidelines (which I encourage all readers to learn at:
www.spg.umich.edu), “protesters have rights, just as do speakers and
artists.  The standard of “undue interference” must not be invoked
lightly, merely to avoid brief interruptions, or to remove distractions
or embarrassment.” But that was exactly what happened: the standard
of “undue interference” was abused and wantonly invoked to lead to our
removal from the event. AMI organizers “sicked” the campus police
on the protesters in the audience and, by force of arrest, silenced our
voices, which are institutionally protected within the university
community “spectrum of opinion.”

As if this weren’t enough violation of university policies, what
ensued was excessive and abusive use of force by campus police officers
against the protesters. Targeting the most vocal, “foreign-looking,”and
obviously Middle Eastern protester, AMI Chair Josh Berman gave the
word and signal to the campus officers to remove her. At that, one male
officer lunged at her, grabbed her out of her seat next to mine, and
tried to shove her out of the room.  But because of the force behind
the pull, she tripped, and fell onto the narrow aisle at my feet.  The
Officer threw his body onto her and thrust his knee into her shoulder,
shouting “Get up! Get up!” though it was clear that, due to his
weightand sheer force, she had been rendered unable to move or rise. When I
and other audience members objected vocally to the officers’ undue
and excessive use of force, he and other campus police officers warned us
that, if we did not desist from our objections, we too would be
arrested. These threats and intimidations represent another flagrant
example of campus authorities’ suppression of the legitimate exercise
of freedom of speech.

Campus police’s violence against ordinary citizens was not isolated
to this one incident.  When a group of us pursued down the hallway the
officers who had hauled away the female protester, we saw lying on the
floor there, with a bloodied forehead, another protester.  He had been
removed from the event venue by officers, handcuffed, and kept on his
back. Despite the protests by demonstrator and physician Dr. Willkinson
for medically humane treatment of the unconscious man, the male officer
ignored her and defiantly repeated, “They are not coming off.”

The institutional parties who have acted badly in this affair are
numerous. One is Diane Brown, whose statements in the two
afore-mentioned newspapers support and protect the police’s and
AMI’s decisions and behavior. In unquestioningly supporting the misactions
and misdeeds of both the student organization and the campus police,
and in concluding that “what happened” that evening justified their
responses, and that, hence, these responses do not constitute abuse of
power and negligence of obligations toward all participants, including
protesters, Ms. Brown has failed her institutional responsibility and
duties.

The one beacon of light in the midst of this dark intolerance was one
young man who did the right thing: out of the crowd he appeared and
held the hand of the female victim while she was being pinned down by
Officer West and a female officer. This young man remained by the
protester’s side throughout her detainment by the police. He
recognized that it behooved everyone to protect the rights of all
participatants’to free expression, particularly when that expression
is consideredonerous. This young man rose as the sole conscientious citizen
in that crowd and I salute him.

kathryn babayan

-----------------------------

Mideast talk leads to scuffle
Protesters allege police brutality
Kelly Fraser
Posted: 12/4/06
Campus police arrested three Ann Arbor residents accused of
disturbing a lecture on Iran at the Michigan League on Thursday night.

The protesters have accused campus police of using excessive force in
removing them, while event organizers say the protesters were
violating free expression by preventing a lecturer from speaking.

The lecture was sponsored by the student organization American
Movement for Israel. Raymond Tanter, a professor emeritus of
political science who now teaches at Georgetown University, said he
was interrupted repeatedly during his lecture.

The protesters were chanting things like "Hands off Iran" and "Tanter
is a pig," Tanter said.

Tanter said he was not advocating that the United States use military
force against Iran, but did say that it may be one option. The
protesters were not affiliated with a campus organization.

A 47-year-old woman was arrested for disturbing a public meeting and
resisting and obstructing an officer, campus police said. Two men
were arrested on charges of resisting and obstructing an officer and
interfering with an arrest.

Witnesses identified the men as Blaine Coleman and Henry Herksovitz,
two pro-Palestinian activists who often protest on and around campus.

When asked to comment on his arrest, Coleman responded by asking The
Michigan Daily to advocate for divestment from Israel and decried
what he considered "campus Zionists using their police to brutalize
us on campus."

Herksovitz did not respond to attempts to contact him yesterday.

Tanter said that although he mentioned Israel, his lecture focused on
diplomacy problems in Iran.

Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Diane Brown said Michigan
League staff made the first call to DPS because protesters were
blocking the building's entrances well before the event was scheduled
to begin at 7:30 p.m.

Organizers had not expected a protest and did not request police
presence prior to the lecture, said American Movement for Israel
Chair Josh Berman.

With about 150 people in attendance inside the Vandenberg Room,
Berman said the protesters began to heckle him before he introduced
Tanter.

Tanter said that in an attempt to abate the protesters, he began
taking questions from the audience, alternating inquiries from the
protesters with other audience members.

Tanter said the interruptions prevented him from continuing with his
planned lecture and using the PowerPoint slides he had prepared.

"I was bending over backwards in order to accommodate the
protesters," Tanter said. "The accommodations I made only resulted in
greater hostility."

The University's Standard Practice Guide for Freedom of Speech and
Artistic Expression provides rules for balancing protesters' freedom
of speech with that of speakers at events. The document says a person
may be removed from an event for "undue interference."

Heckling is accepted under the guidelines, but the interruptions
cannot block the speaker's communication with the crowd.

In situations where an event is disrupted by a crowd member, the
University has a formal warning procedure, with three escalating
warnings that should be read before police escort a protester from an
event.

Brown said it is not mandatory that the statement be read before
someone is asked to leave an event, but that it has become an
accepted procedure at the University.

Berman said he and other organizers read the three warnings.

Campus police officers then stepped in to remove the woman. The woman
resisted by going limp, Brown said.

This forced the police to physically remove the woman from the scene,
she said.

Berman said the woman was allowed to stay for more than an hour
before police asked her to leave.

LSA senior Stuart Wagner, who was in the crowd, said he saw Coleman
try to prevent the officers from removing the woman from the room. He
also said that an officer put his arms around Coleman from behind, at
which point Coleman fell to the ground.

"It was a circus," Wagner said.

Catherine Wikinson, an Ann Arbor resident who said she came to
support friends who were protesting, said Coleman was unconscious.

Brown said this could have been part of Coleman's strategy.

"Portraying unconsciousness is part of a protest strategy and up to a
medical physician to decide," she said.

Coleman refused to comment on whether or not he was unconscious.

An ambulance was called to the scene and took Coleman, 49, to the
University Hospital's emergency room to treat a cut on his forehead.

The other two protesters were taken from the League to the DPS
station for processing, Brown said. Coleman was taken to the station
following his treatment.

The three were released pending prosecutors' authorization of charges
late Thursday night or early Friday morning, Brown said.

DPS is investigating the incident. Brown said the results of the
investigation will be taken to the county prosecutor, who will issue
any warrants.

Wilkinson alleged that the police used excessive force when removing
the protesters from the scene. Brown said police were patient and
used only necessary force.

A 45-second clip posted Friday on YouTube.com, titled "Police
Brutality at University of Michigan," shows Wilkinson telling an
officer that Coleman can't breath. The video does not clearly show
the officer or Coleman.

Brown said standard police protocol is to use one level of force
above the resistance. Because the protesters used passive resistance
techniques, DPS used "open-handed techniques" to physically remove
the woman. Open-handed techniques could include applying pressure to
pressure points, but do not include the use of any weapons or
chemical agents, like mace, she said.

"(The allegations are) just not true - the police were so gentle that
they couldn't get her up," Tanter said.

Tanter has e-mailed members of the University's Board of Regents
about Prof. Kathryn Babayan's alleged involvement in the protest.

Babayan is an assistant professor of Iranian history and culture in
the Department of Near Eastern Studies. Tanter said that while
Babayan has a right to participate in the discussions, she also has
an obligation as a faculty member to not assist groups that interfere
with free speech.

Tanter suggested the regents and the Senate Advisory Committee on
University Affairs, which addresses faculty issues at the University,
consider the issue of a faculty member's role in disruptive
demonstrations during academic events.

Babayan did not return calls asking for comment yesterday. ©
Copyright 2006 Michigan Daily



-------------
Clouds, but no thunder
Despite rumors, protesters don't interrupt lecture
Kelly Fraser
Posted: 12/5/06
About five campus police officers and a bomb-sniffing dog swept
Auditorium B of Angell Hall last night before a speech by a strident
critic of Islamic fundamentalists.

Rumors that the event would be disrupted by pro-Palestinian
protesters circulated through campus and on the Internet yesterday,
prompting event organizers to request a heightened police presence.

Despite the precautions, pro-Israel activist Brigitte Gabriel
delivered a lecture in which she warned Americans about "the dangers
of Islamic radicals" without incident.

Organizers feared pro-Palestinian protesters would disrupt the speech
as they did at the Michigan League during a lecture on Iran last
week. During that lecture, Department of Public Safety officers
arrested three Ann Arbor residents after they resisted efforts from
police to remove them from a lecture on Iran.

One protester was taken to the hospital with minor cuts and a bloody
nose, and his fellow protesters alleged police brutality. DPS is
investigating the incident.

Blaine Coleman, one of the protesters who was arrested on Thursday,
did not respond to e-mails asking for comment last night.

Police used a canine unit to search the auditorium before allowing
students and community members to enter at 7:45 p.m., 15 minutes
before the event was scheduled to begin.

DPS spokeswoman Diane Brown said before the event that DPS had
briefed organizers on security precautions and the University's Free
Speech policy.

None of the protesters who disturbed Thursday's lecture showed up.

The lecture, which was originally scheduled in Auditorium C of Angell
Hall, moved to Auditorium B to accommodate a larger than expected
crowd. The larger auditorium filled quickly after the doors opened.

Before introducing Gabriel, organizers opened the event by reading
from the University's statement on Free Speech and Artistic Expression.

Rumors on the Internet yesterday indicated that the event could be
confrontational.

An e-mail signed with Gabriel's name was posted on the
thecoversativevoice.com. The e-mail requests support and protection
from protesters, who it alleges have sent e-mails to "Arab students"
asking them to "give Gabriel a proper welcome."

Shimaa Abdelfadeel, co-chair of the pro-Palestinian group Students
Allied for Freedom and Equality and political chair of the Muslim
Students' Association, said she had not heard of or seen such an
e-mail.

Except for frequent applause during a question-and-answer period, the
crowd remained calm and quiet throughout the event.

Gabriel is the author of "Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic
Terror Warns America." Gabriel, who now lives in the United States,
said her negative views on Muslim fundamentalists were shaped by her
childhood experiences as a Lebanese Christian during the Lebanese
Civil War. The book describes her experiences living in a bomb
shelter for seven years during the war.

Gabriel founded the American Congress for Truth, a nonprofit
organization that she describes as "dedicated to educating millions
of uneducated Americans on the threat of Islamic radicals."

Police were highly visible at last night's event, which was hosted by
the pro-Israel student group Israel Initiative for Dialogue,
Education and Action.

LSA junior Brad Stulberg, a cofounder of Israel IDEA, said the group
tries to host one big event a year. They said they chose Gabriel to
foster dialogue.

"Despite potential threats to Ms. Gabriel's freedom of speech, the
event was very successful," Israel IDEA member Nick Israel said. "We
were glad to see an audience composed of a diverse cross-section of
the student body and the local community."

Organizers collected audience questions on note cards and posed them
to Gabriel.Israel said organizers tried to select questions that challenged her
position. Gabriel called for Islam to reform itself and said Israelis and
Palestinians hold different ethical standards.

"(The mainstream television networks) need to take political
correctness and shove it in the garbage where it belongs," she said.
© Copyright 2006 Michigan Daily