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To the University of Maine System community,
Yesterday’s shocking act of violence at a public university and the anniversary today of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on our nation and its ideals require us all to reflect on our own role and responsibilities in ensuring that our campuses and communities are open, safe, and welcoming of those with a wide range of life experiences and opinions.
I want to be clear: violence has no place in our universities or our democracy.
When people use violence to censor individuals or ideas with which they disagree, they miss the chance for new and deeper understanding and connection.
We must do better. And I know we will.
Maine’s public universities are committed to fostering environments where all ideas can be shared, debated, and further developed in a safe and respectful manner. Consistent with the U.S. Constitution and our own value of academic freedom, our System remains unequivocal in protecting and promoting free speech, free expression, and peaceful assembly. With those fundamental rights also comes the opportunity and the obligation to listen, consider, and challenge what we hear in a civil manner. Differences of opinion must never disrupt our universities’ ability to operate or devolve into threats or harm, as tragically happened yesterday in Utah.
I recognize that recent events — including the disturbing increase in political violence at our schools, in our streets, and on our screens — may weigh heavily on members of our community. Please treat one another and yourselves with care and compassion. If you are a student who needs support, I encourage you to reach out to the counseling services available at your university, while faculty and staff can always access our confidential Employee Assistance Program.
In this moment, I invite us all to review the System’s Policy on Free Speech, Academic Freedom, and Civility and recommit ourselves to upholding its principles of mutual respect and fostering free inquiry, values that make our UMS universities great leaders of higher learning, and also models for how we can — and must — engage with one another in a free society.
Respectfully,
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