CENSORSHIP
Iran, Bollinger and Salman Rushdie [Greg Pollowitz]
If Ahmadinejad does speak at Columbia, I would hope that President Bollinger brings up Salman Rushdie, who was forced into hiding by Khomeini's death threats over the publication of The Satanic Verses.
And as ironies go, here's an interview of Salman Rushide by Bollinger. An excerpt:
Bollinger: At your talk at Columbia in 1991, you gave a self-description, in which you talked about holding on to your soul. You said, “No matter how great the storm, if that plunges me into contradiction and paradox, so be it. I’ve lived in that messy ocean all my life. I fished in it for my art. This turbulent sea was the sea outside my bedroom window in Bombay. It is the sea by which I was born and which I carry with me wherever I go.” Do you still agree with this as a description of yourself?
Rushdie: Yes. I mean, this really is the last thing to say: I think that democracy, freedom, art, literature—these are not tea parties, you know? These are turbulent, brawling, arguing, abrasive things. I’ve always seen the work of the imagination and the world of the intellect as being turbulent places. And, you know, out of turbulence come sparks, which are sometimes creative and sometimes not. But without that turbulence, in a calm sea, nothing happens.
If Bollinger really wants to highlight the power of free speech, he should invite Rushdie to debate Ahmadinejad.
09/21 10:15 AM
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