Professor wrong. There should be no room for extremism at Ohio State.

There is no room for extremism

Re "OSU President Carter left students to armed invaders," March 2: Ohio State University Professor Michiko Hikida appears to have a clouded view of the need for policing at Ohio State. As demonstrations at UCLA and other campuses show, there are participants who proclaim violence against Israeli citizens and their military.

In the Fall of 2016, a radicalized student attacked a group of students and faculty, running his automobile off the street toward them outside Watts Hall, injuring a faculty member then leaping out with knife and slashing bystanders.

Fortunately, an alert OSU policeman happened to be on the scene and immediately shot the assailant, possibly saving several lives.

OSU PRESIDENT:'What occurred on our campus on April 25 was not about limiting free speech'

Extremism is a reality and it is the job of law enforcement officers to protect the public. I commend President Ted Carter for his prudent message regarding recent disturbances at the OSU campus and support the OSU police force in its mission to protect the campus community.    

Mitchell H. Grant, Dublin

Professor showed courage

Re"OSU President Carter left students to armed invaders: The column written by Ohio State Professor Michiko Hikida about what happened at the Oval on April 5 was spot on.

I was at the protest with my son, who attends OSU. It is offensive for OSU and the media to call students' family members "unaffiliated" and "agitators."

OSU President Ted Carter and OSU police cooperated to brutalize students, faculty, and community members for standing up for what's right. One student who suffered a concussion during her final week spoke at Columbus City Council and made a plea to have the charges dropped.

Protesters' religious rights were also violated while in custody. Female Muslim students were forced to remove their hijab, denied the right to pray, and have halal food.

I am grateful to Hikida for having the courage to defend her students and calling out the OSU and law enforcement violent and hostile response.

Students have every right to advocate for causes they believe in.

Arresting students and faculty for speaking about Palestine and condemning the Israeli genocide and forced starvation in Gaza is repugnant. OSU cannot penalize, suspend or expel students because it is publicly funded, therefore, it is obligated to uphold students’ First Amendment rights, which includes the right to free speech and peaceful assembly.

Mahmoud El-Yousseph, Westerville

Guns are dangerous, too

Re "Ohio bill could mandate alcohol training," May 2: Since the State House GOP thinks training alcohol servers is needed, why not pass a bill requiring mandatory training for anyone who owns a gun? 

After all, alcohol, like guns, doesn't kill but both can be very dangerous.

Jerry Bower, Columbus

No need for a draft

Re Letter to the editor "NFL draft seems unfair," May 1: Bill Hutter's satirical letter May 1 argues for a misguided analogy that the NFL should incorporate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and, by his definition, draft unqualified players.

Successful corporate diversity and inclusion initiatives simply cast the widest net possible when searching for potential employees and, additionally, create a welcoming environment of inclusivity to retain good employees.

As a business owner, I want employees who don't think like me or have the same experiences as me whether those differences include age, race, religion, socioeconomic status, gender, culture, sexual orientation or ability.

More:'Pausing' Ohio University scholarships outrageous. Yost's backlash against race makes me sick.

Diversity creates new points of view and creative solutions to complex problems. And there's data to support that companies with these initiatives are more successful than their competitors, otherwise these programs would be abandoned.

Diversity and inclusion initiatives are not a new phenomenon. Decades ago, when our veterans returned home in wheelchairs from World War II, the response was to create ramps on sidewalks.

Mark Bennett, Columbus