Members of a Muslim student group want MSU officials to publicly speak out against an engineering professor who sent an "offensive" e-mail message to the organization in February.
Indrek Wichman, a mechanical engineering professor, told the Muslim Students' Association that "If you do not like the values of the West … you are free to leave. I hope for God's sake that most of you choose that option," in a Feb. 28 e-mail sent from his university account.
The e-mail also read, "I counsul you dissatisfied, agressive, brutal, and uncivilized slave-trading Moslems to be very aware of this as you proceed with your infantile 'protests.'"
The same day, members of the association protested against the publication of Danish cartoons that depicted the Prophet Muhammad, calling them inappropriate.
They feel the e-mail was inappropriate as well.
"I'm angry, frustrated, appalled — all of the above," said Farhan Abdul Azeez, the association's president and a human biology senior.
Azeez said the association met with university officials several times since the incident occurred and have been assured Wichman's views are not shared by the university. Provost Kim Wilcox told the group he personally admonished the professor in a letter, Azeez said, but he has not made the content of the letter public.
The association's students think that response is not enough. In a statement to the press released Monday, the students called on the university to publicly reprimand Wichman and make diversity training mandatory for faculty and incoming students.
"An investigation immediately followed (the first meeting between administrators and students) to assure the integrity of the learning environment in general, or specifically, was not at risk," university spokesman Terry Denbow said.
Wilcox's letter to Wichman was not released because it is considered a private communication, Denbow said, but added he could speak to the content of the letter.
"It indicated that never should anyone purport to speak for anyone other than themselves and their personal views," Denbow said. "The provost finds the communication in the e-mail to naturally lead to the conclusion the students reached."
Wichman's e-mail read that he and "many, many, many of my colleagues" considered the acts of Muslims offensive, alluding to things such as beheadings and the rape of Scandinavian women.
In an e-mail to The State News on Monday, Wichman wrote, "A communication that I thought was private was subsequently made public, much to my chagrin. That is troubling, and I regret this entire incident."
He declined further comment until a later time.
Dawud Walid, executive director of the Michigan branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said MSU needs to publicly denounce the statement.
The council, a nationwide Muslim advocacy group for civil rights, got involved with the situation when the MSU group contacted them because students were frustrated by the university's response.
"We are not calling for his dismissal," Walid said. "We want the university to clearly state this type of inciteful speech should not be condoned by any institution."
Walid said he met with university officials April 14 and still has not heard about further action they might take. If he does not hear anything by the end of the week, he said he will file an official complaint with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights.
When asked why the university did not make a statement before the group issued its press release, Denbow said the university did not want to "decry publicly what we considered a private communication."
"We considered this the views of one person — he does not represent the views of anyone but himself," Denbow said.
Denbow said while the action was inappropriate, the university's stance has always been that education can only take place when all values and ideas are expressed and open to be challenged.
"Ideas, even those inimical to our values, must be surfaced so they can be challenged," Denbow said. "That is where education occurs."
Azeez said Paulette Granberry Russell, senior adviser to the president for diversity and director of the Office of Affirmative Action, Compliance & Monitoring, told the association during the meetings between the group and the administration that Wichman's actions did not violate the university's harassment policy.
But earlier this year, university officials told The State News that students could be punished for violating the policy that includes harassment or discrimination on the basis of race and religion.
Denbow said there is not a different set of rules for faculty and students.
Azeez said his group only took this action after they felt they had exhausted all other options.
"We are not trying to turn people against MSU," Azeez said. "We want a healthier learning environment for everyone."
Josh Jarman can be reached at jarmanjo@msu.edu.
