May 18, 2007

Outside Protests Drive Catholic College to Drop Graduation Speaker

The College of St. Mary, a 1,000-student Roman Catholic institution in Nebraska, canceled the commencement speech scheduled for Sunday after outside protests threatened to interrupt graduation ceremonies, according to the Omaha World-Herald. The invited speaker was Roberta Wilhelm, a top official at Girls Inc., a national advocacy group that, among other things, supports abortion rights. That position makes it anathema to many Catholics, and a local pastor joined a national group in urging the invitation to be withdrawn. The college’s president told the newspaper that it had then received a barrage of e-mail, telephone calls, and faxes threatening to disrupt the commencement. The national group, the Cardinal Newman Society, has denounced a number of Catholic colleges for not being “Catholic enough.” —Andrew Mytelka

Comments

1. This is wonderful news! Catholic colleges must remember that they are not just colleges, they are Catholic colleges. Good for St. Mary’s.

   — RobK    May 18, 10:52 AM    #

2. Sad that this happened. I applaud St. Mary’s on their choice of speaker, and I am saddened that they were bullied by thugs threatening to disrupt commencement. Universities should be places for free and open debate and exchange of ideas, NOT orthodoxy.

   — Joe G.    May 18, 11:51 AM    #

3. It is one thing to change one’s mind about a commencement speaker because one has been persuaded that the speaker is not the right speaker for the institution and/or the occasion. Even in this case, the speaker should be asked if she/he would be willing not to be speak, on the basis of the reasons that persuaded one, and not simply disinvited. (And if the speaker still wishes to speak, then tough). It is another thing entirely to disinvite a speaker on the basis that (as it seems) outsiders — not students, or even parents of students, or alumni — are threatening to disrupt the institution’s graduation ceremonies because of the speaker. It does seem as though the outsiders did not provide reasons against the appropriateness of the speaker, or did not merely do this, but threatened disruption of the institution’s ceremonies. If outsiders believe the speaker to be inappropriate, then they should do what is appropriate — which is to write letters of complaint, etc., and boycott the event if needs be, or even, if it is legal, stage a march or a protest, which informs those participating of their objections to the speaker. They should not threaten to disrupt the ceremonies.

   — Jem, Ph.D.    May 18, 01:51 PM    #

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