SaraKay Smullens

Penn State leadership is courting danger and undermining democracy by not seeing the threat of legitimizing the Proud Boys in the aftermath of January 6. I was pleased that The Philadelphia Inquirer published my letter on October 17th.

In our troubled and divided country, with democracy under siege, the most important mission a college can honor is to inspire its students to be ethical human beings and, to the best of its ability, protect them from danger. Especially danger from within the institution. Sadly, Penn State’s leadership is courting danger from within by protecting their campus conservative club’s Oct. 24 speaking invitation to Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes, who consistently inspires violence with his expressions of prejudice in hate-laced rhetoric. Students pushing back on this invite warn that McInnes’ presence, one that may bring large numbers of his followers to campus, poses an enormous threat.

According to Penn State leadership, however, the organization issuing the invite, Uncensored America, a recognized student organization, has an “undeniable constitutional right” to carry on with its planned evening. Why doesn’t leadership value the “undeniable constitutional right” of students to protect themselves and their academic home from the highly disturbed vitriol of the likes of Gavin McInnes and his followers?

SaraKay Smullens, Philadelphia
The Philadelphia Inquirer, October 17, 2022

https://www.inquirer.com/opinion/letters/letters-to-the-editor-oct-17-20221017.html