I am writing this letter as a citizen of the community, not as an employee of Judicial Affairs or Penn State. I am electing to exercise, without solicitation, my right to respond to the unmerited, personal attack on one whom I consider a mentor, a friend, and one with a life-long record of championing student's rights, civil liberties and social justice in word and deed. I have witnessed his challenges to authority and seen him stand arm in arm with students as they actively fought oppression and social injustice. I am, of course, speaking of Terrell Jones.

Don't get me wrong. I agree that students have an obligation to scrutinize and be critical of decisions, practices, policies and programs and the way they are administered or taught, when they, the students, do not agree. In my recent experiences, I have respected the students who had the conviction to be vocal and active in promoting their view for students' rights and while not in agreement with some premises presented and at times, I certainly prefer such a dialogue to apathy. Exercising one's right of free speech is at the heart of a free society, but so is being accountable to others in an ethical and moral way for the utterances. Mr. Hyneman's public tirade was personal, insulting the man, his family, his heritage and in my opinion, disgraceful.

Reading the racist, unwarranted, vicious attack of a good, kind and caring man causes me to question the sincerity of the speaker's quest for human rights and dignity and certainly of those faculty and students who may have encouraged, applauded, or silently approved such purposeless and malicious actions. Hate, bigotry, and incivility do not advance the cause of justice; they attempt to destroy it. In short, Bob Hyneman, and those of you who concur with his portrayal of Terrell Jones, please remember that the words that you have spoken reveal much more about your character than they do his.