If the people who died in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks could have anticipated their deaths, I wonder if they would have remained silent about their views about what was going to happen. Imagine that they knew they were going to die, and they were given one last chance to express their views — about their fears, about what they would miss or regret, but also about what they would want to have happen in the world if it were up to them.
I wonder if some of them would have said, “Oh, we should only express our individual views. Just because we have something very important in common — namely, that we will all soon become victims of a common set of terrible, violent acts — we don’t have any right to speak as a group. After all, some of us might disagree with what the group as a whole votes on or comes to consensus about, so it wouldn’t be fair for the group to speak in our name. Only elected government officials have the right to speak collectively about matters of war and peace.”
It’s too late for those people to express their views — but it’s not too late for us. We need to remember that each person in the United States has a chance of dying, not just in a car accident or of a disease, but in the next terrorist attack. Sure, it’s unlikely it will be you or me — but there’s always a chance.
So the question is, should we remain mute about the events that are unfolding, about our fears, and about the changes we hope for in the world? Should we only express ourselves outside working hours, on our own, whenever there is a controversial issue about which not everyone agrees? Should we accept unquestioningly policies passed by others that basically tell us that it’s none of our business to collectively express our views about matters of war, deceit and killing people in the name of peace? If we’d lived in Hitler’s Germany would we have said, “that has nothing to do with me,” and gone about our business?
There are no leaders we can or should unquestioningly defer to. Deferring to leaders who have already shown themselves unworthy of our trust and unable to assure our security is nonsensical. While reason is not always found in a group, it is much more likely to emerge from respectful, orderly group debate and resolution than from acceptance of being silenced because some authority figure says an issue is just too big for us to deal with.
I encourage all the members of the University Assembly to address the issue of war with Iraq and to vote on a resolution in opposition. If we’re too afraid to do that, how in the world will be able to deal with the events that are likely to follow? It’s time for all of us to lead — together, for our institution, our nation and our world.