SC professors, students sign statement opposing Bush visit [View All]

http://www.thestate.com/statewire/story/402759.html

SC professors, students sign statement opposing Bush visit
By MEG KINNARD - Associated Press Writer


COLUMBIA, S.C. --
More than 200 Furman University students and faculty members are objecting to the school's first visit by a sitting U.S. president, criticizing the Bush administration's handling of the Iraq war and environmental issues.
President Bush is scheduled to give Furman's graduation speech on May 31 at this fairly conservative school of 2,625 undergraduate students with Baptist roots in the state's traditionally conservative Upstate region.

Earlier this month, 222 students and faculty members signed and posted on the school's Web site a statement titled "We Object," which outlines objections to the president's visit. The statement cites the war in Iraq and the administration's "obstructing progress on reducing greenhouse gases while favoring billions in tax breaks and subsidies to oil companies that are earning record profits."

"We are ashamed of the actions of this administration. The war in Iraq has cost the lives of over 4,000 brave and honorable U.S. military personnel," they wrote. "Because we love this country and the ideals it stands for, we accept our civic responsibility to speak out against these actions that violate American values."

The school said the event would mark the first time a sitting president has visited the school in its 182-year history. Some protesters said they will skip the Bush speech entirely, others said they plan to attend the ceremony, perhaps wearing arm bands in protest.

"Under ordinary circumstances, it would be an honor for Furman University to be visited by the President of the United States," reads the protest statement. "However, these are not ordinary circumstances."
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