Free exchange of ideas

"This is America at its best," Columbia president Lee Bollinger concluded his statement regarding the visit of Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It is an apt statement. Whatever the present differences between the governments of Iran and the United States, Ahmadinejad's visit represents an important contribution to the public discourse and admirably reflects a university's mission to promote the free exchange of ideas. In short, it reflects the best of American ideals.

Ahmadinejad, and the government he leads, has pursued policies leading to the death of American soldiers, presided over the suppression of internal dissent and made statements questioning the historical validity of the Holocaust. Yet for better or worse, he and the country he leads is of huge importance to the United States and the world at large. Interested students at Columbia will learn from hearing what he has to say. The format of the visit has been carefully structured to promote discourse and debate: The session will be evenly split between Ahmadinejad's statements and a question-and-answer session. Bollinger pledged to raise several pointed questions regarding Iran's policies in his introduction before a word escapes Ahmadinejad's mouth.

This format represents a good-faith effort to present a balanced and constructive debate. That knowledge and enrichment can arise from this process is central to the ethos of any academic institution. To prevent the president of Iran from speaking is to prevent Columbia's students and the public at large from hearing an important perspective in global affairs, no matter how warped or abhorrent. That an American universty can provide such a platform for a figure so disliked by its government is a fine testament to the country's democracy, a point which will not be lost on the Iranian president's audience.

Matthew Halgren '09, Babur Khwaja '09, Scott Moore '08 and Daniel Rauch '10