MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon and the MSU College of Law Student Bar Association denounced students' reaction toward Congressman Tom Tancredo's discussion about illegal immigration in letters sent to the MSU community on Monday.
On Nov. 30, protesters appeared before the congressman was scheduled to speak, and a fire alarm was pulled, forcing about 200 people to leave the building. Physical and verbal confrontations followed as the groups, which included Young Americans for Freedom, MSU College Republicans and protesters, moved outside.
A second fire alarm was pulled while Tancredo was speaking.
According to the Student Bar Association, or SBA, letter, "the insulting, disruptive and violent behavior that occurred on Thursday evening is unacceptable."
Simon agreed in a separate letter, saying disruption has no place on MSU's campus.
Ugo Buzzi, SBA's vice president and second-year law student, said several law students were at the event, but did not participate in the protest or react to the protesters.
"The behavior that went on was inappropriate, and we felt it was important for SBA to convey that and hopefully stop that behavior from happening again," Buzzi said.
Simon's letter also states how she feels that debate is good but disruption is not.
"While we may disagree with one another's positions, as a learning community we must respect the rights of individuals to express their positions — without fear of intimidation and physical harm," she said in her letter.
The association made it very clear that the College of Law in no way supports or refutes Tancredo's views, but said his free speech rights are protected everywhere — even on campus.
"As law students and a law school, we want to promote the exchange and debate of ideas," he said.
SBA members said they plan to send the letter to Tancredo and The Denver Post because they felt Tancredo cast a "negative light" on the MSU community, said Kevin Morrow, a second-year law student and member of SBA.
"I think we feel, as a school, that some of the quotes from (Tancredo) were to slight us," Morrow said.
"We don't like to see the community's reputation taken down a notch for somebody that is just trying to score political points."
The SBA has no problem with protesting, but some of the activities that night didn't encourage the free exchange of ideas, Buzzi said.
"What we are condemning is not the protest, but the preventing of him from speaking and the pulling of the fire alarm, the spitting and the kicking — anything that went on that night that was of uncivil nature," he said.
Simon also referred to an MSU policy about outside speakers.
"It is the policy of Michigan State University to foster a spirit of free inquiry and to encourage the timely discussion of a wide variety of issues, provided that the views expressed are stated openly and, therefore, are subject to critical evaluation."
