To the Editor:
As leaders of Hillel and Shanti -- the Jewish and Hindu religious groups on campus -- we feel that it is necessary to let the community know our position in the debate on Noah Riner's convocation speech. Shanti President Anjali Deshmukh '07 and I would like to make it clear that a discussion of Jesus is not what we have issue with. The values that he taught, as a historical figure, are ones that most people do not debate. It is the implication, however, that all of us should look to Jesus as our Savior, that we are disturbed by. Riner said, "... the solution is God's love: Jesus on the cross, for us." Invoking imagery of the cross, using the word "us," but not me -- these are inappropriate for a speech opening the new school year and welcoming all students.
There is a real danger in assuming that everyone on this campus is Christian, or even religious. Part of the value of the Dartmouth experience is learning about and embracing diversity and this disrespectful action is the complete antithesis of the values that Dartmouth espouses. Presumably, the Student Body President is elected to represent the entire Dartmouth community. It is inappropriate to take advantage of the visibility and power of this position to promote one's personal agenda. There are ways in which a speech can "create a dialogue about character issues" without offending and dividing the campus.
Alienating and offending a few students is, unto itself, something that a campus leader should avoid at all costs. Doing this to a large portion of the population is inexcusable. Josh Jacobson '09 said, "I was floored. I couldn't believe my ears. As a Jewish student, I felt isolated and rejected." Jennifer Kleinman '06 had a strong reaction as well. "I'm a Christian and therefore share Noah's religious views, but even I felt uncomfortable with his references to Jesus. I thought that it was really inappropriate for a Convocation at a secular college like Dartmouth, and it was clear in looking at people's faces in the crowd that they felt the same way. It was unfortunate that he had to obscure the important message of his speech with overly religious rhetoric that alienated so many in the crowd."
We would like to call for an examination and discussion of the role of Student Assembly and its President. Moreover, we would like to invite Noah Riner to the Multi-Faith Council to learn to work with the diversity that makes Dartmouth such a wonderful place to be, rather than divide and offend. We hope that the rest of the year will not reflect this rocky start.
