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Students should show up for Khizr Khan

His speech falls in a tradition of defending civil rights at U.Va.

On Nov. 1, the Miller Center will welcome Khizr Khan, father of late University alumnus Capt. Humayun Khan. Khizr Khan rose to prominence after delivering a Democratic National Convention speech in which he expressed support for Hillary Clinton’s candidacy. After that speech, Khan became a public figure for a Muslim-American minority that has often been targeted this election season — especially as Republican nominee Donald Trump attacked Khan and his wife on the basis of stereotypes about their religion. Not only should students attend Khan’s speech out of respect for our late peer and his family; we should also view this as an opportunity to showcase our support for religious freedom, particularly for our Muslim classmates.

Khan’s appearance at Old Cabell Hall follows a rich history of civil rights discussions at our school. Other speakers in that same auditorium include late Prof. Julian Bond and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Discrimination against Muslims in our country has emerged as one of the major civil rights issues in our lifetime. Some similarly divisive rhetoric has recently reached Charlottesville as well, with the most recent incident being anti-Semitic hate speech written outside of the GrandMarc apartment complex. At a time when racial tensions are running high both nationally and locally, students should recognize the importance of showing up to this event.

Khan is not only a national figure; he and his wife are members of the Charlottesville community, and his son was a student here who went on to live out our highest ideals of service. Khan’s visit to our school gives us a unique chance to listen to a perspective from the Muslim community — and should inspire us to elevate our discourse about issues many of our peers face.

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