Dissenting Opinion

THE RESTRAINT shown by Harvard students during William Coors' recent visit to the University did not prove Harvard students' commitment to free speech. Tight security made any potential disruption of Coors' address impossible. Bags and jackets were searched by police, twenty Conservative Club marshalls stalked the hall and video cameras filmed the audience in order to intimidate would-be protesters. There is no way to know whether or not activists would have interfered with the address in the absence of these measures, but recent history suggests that they would have.

Coerced liberalism is a poor mask for intolerance. Coors may have brought a prejudiced and authoritarian message to Harvard, but it was a message he has every right to express. Harvard students should not be applauded for respecting that right. Because we have in the past proved ourselves intolerant, the University was tragically justified in its use of police-state tactics. Harvard students "did themselves proud" only because they were left no option.