PUBLICATIONS Inside Illinois Vol. 21, No. 7, Oct. 4, 2001

A Message from the Chancellor

Nancy Cantor

While we have all witnessed many acts of courage and togetherness these past two weeks, a number of incidents of intolerance that have taken place across this nation -- and, sadly, even here -- prompt this message.

We must not allow our grief and outrage at the crimes perpetrated in New York and Washington to turn to hate. We must not let our sense of violation turn us against those who may appear to be outsiders. There are no outsiders. Our common humanity was violated on Sept. 11.

In the wake of that tragedy, we turned to each other. We drew closer together as a caring community. We must not let the terrorists divide us.

We must be very cognizant of our language, our actions and our feelings. We must not displace our fear or anger by turning on others. Our community is rich because of its diversity. There are people here who have links to all parts of the globe. Tolerance and respect for diversitygoes to the heart of what universities Ð and this country Ð are all about.

The university will act to defend these values we hold so dear. Any member of the campus community experiencing or witnessing harassment should report it. I promise you that we will investigate it vigorously.

As a community we have demonstrated remarkable qualities since the tragedy. We have participated in commemorations, collected for disaster relief, sung together and meditated alone about those who lost their lives and those who loved them. In many ways, this trial has brought out the best in us.

I ask all members of the campus community to continue to support each other during the weeks and months ahead. These are not easy times, but the UI at Urbana-Champaign is up to the challenge.

Nancy Cantor