TO THE EDITOR:
By now most people are well aware of the actions of student Haley Koch and six other protesters who were arrested following their disruption of two speeches on the UNC campus. What Koch and those arrested along with her have exhibited to the University community is nothing less than intolerance to the highest degree. Because Koch and the others did not agree with viewpoints held by the speakers they decided to restrict the rights of others to hear what both speakers had to say.
Koch's actions along with those of her peers demonstrated that to these seven people UNC is not a place where viewpoints can be expressed freely. Instead to them UNC should only tolerate one set of beliefs one mindset: their own. As most students know UNC is no place to hate and threatening a guest speaker because you don't agree with his ideas is something that we as students of a public university should not tolerate. It would likely best serve the University community in the future if the recipients of some of our most prestigious undergraduate scholarships were made aware that hate and censorship will not be tolerated here.
Morehead-Cain scholars are supposed to be among the best and brightest that our University has to offer. Unfortunately Koch has demonstrated that despite her worldliness she is still unable to tolerate any viewpoints that differ from her own. Either the Morehead-Cain Scholarship program should start offering its scholars seminars in the rights protected by the First Amendment or they should think seriously about refusing to allow someone who exhibits such radical intolerance to remain in the program.
Bill Laurence
Junior
History