Bilal's lecture was widely considered "stimulating and thought-provoking," RPI Vice President for Strategic Communications William Walker said in a statement e-mailed to the Times Union Thursday evening. But questions surfaced about the exhibit's "legality" and "consistency with the norms and policies of the institute."
He said: "The university is considering various factors relating to the exhibition, and has suspended it pending a more complete review of its origin, content, and intent. Rensselaer fully supports academic and artistic freedom. The question under review regards the use of university resources to provide a platform for what may be a product of a terrorist organization or which suggests violence directed toward the President of the United States and his family."
Gorss, the RPI spokesman, said no one would be available to comment beyond the statement.
RPI student body president Julia Leusner argued that it was hypocritical of Bilal to depict the stereotype he was condemning.
"If Bilal was making a point about the vulnerability of Iraqi civilians to the travesties of the current war, I failed to see it, as did every other student I spoke to," Leusner said.
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