SFU Skeptics

First of all, I’d like to apologise for any distress we caused you or anyone else. The event did not go as we planned, and there were a number of problems preventing us from communicating our message.

The event was intended to be primarily about censorship, and we even had books and information on the table about the history of censorship. Our biggest problem was that a lot of individuals who were not affiliated with the club expressed hateful and even racist points of view, and there was little we could be to stop them, particularly since there was so much going on that we had to deal with. For example, the SFU Skeptics did not put up any advertisements, but someone else put up a number of posters around campus without our endorsement. Many of these posters were racist, and we would never have put them up.

Even at the table, there were only ever two or three club members. From what I saw, there were a significant number of individuals not associated with the club who believed they were supporting us, but who were actually quite hateful and irrational. Any of the posters making absurd or derogatory claims about Muslims would have been drawn by them, not us. We are very upset that such views would be associated with us. We do not share their attitudes or opinions, and we are very upset that they believed we agreed with them.

I want to make things perfectly clear: We do not hate Muslims. We do not hate anyone. The event was supposed to be about freedom of expression, not about Muslims as a cultural group. Although we may disagree with Muslims about a number of things, we have tried to keep our disagreement civil and focused on ideas rather than people. To a great extent we have failed, and we are very sorry. We disown and disavow all portrayals of a derogatory nature. What we intended to draw were stick figures.

At most, the event was intended to criticise Islam as an ideology, not as an ethnic group. Just as we are free to criticise liberalism, socialism, postmodernism, and even religions like Christianity and Buddhism, we are free to criticise the ideology of Islam. However, derogatory portrayals of Muslims as individuals are completely inappropriate and pointless. We are very sorry that such portrayals would be associated with us. As I have said, although it would not have been club members who created them, we disown those images and apologise.

As for the taking of Qu’ran verses out of context, no SFU Skeptic would have said “Muslims are allowed to kill non-Muslims”. That interpretation of the Qu’ran is overly simplistic and entirely absurd. Whoever said it is a fool, and the SFU Skeptics do not endorse that point of view. We apologise and I apologise that we our event provided an opportunity for hatred to be expressed. It will not happen again. I am personally outraged and entirely surprised that any threatening or intimidating remarks would be exchanged at SFU, since I had no idea that discrimination took place here. Of course such remarks would not have come from the SFU Skeptics, and are completely unacceptable as far as we are concerned. The throwing around of threats is precisely what the event was intended to oppose.

If you would like to speak with us face-to-face, please contact me. I would be happy to come to one of your meetings to give an apology and to answer any questions.

Once again my sincerest apologies,
George Parker
President, SFU Skeptics.