Washington, D.C. – In a letter today to University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp, Representative Walter B. Jones (R-NC) expressed his disappointment regarding the events surrounding former Colorado Congressman Tom Tancredo’s visit this past Tuesday evening to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Congressman Tancredo was invited by a UNC chapter of Youth for Western Civilization to speak on the topic of in-state tuition for illegal aliens. Unfortunately, his talk was unable to proceed after campus police were forced to shut down the event due to protestors, who shouted accusations of racism and even shattered a window of the classroom where the talk was to take place.

“I commend you for contacting Congressman Tancredo to apologize for his treatment during his visit to Chapel Hill,” Congressman Jones wrote. “While his opposition to in-state tuition benefits for illegal immigrants may be controversial to some, Congressman Tancredo is a respected and knowledgeable leader in the immigration reform movement. It is regrettable that those with dissenting opinions robbed others of the chance to hear his comments. In a university setting, where the future leaders of our nation are educated, all viewpoints on matters of public policy deserve the opportunity to be heard.”

“I hope that disciplinary measures will be taken as warranted against any students or professors who participated in disrupting Congressman Tancredo’s talk. I urge the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to invite Congressman Tancredo to return to campus so that he may address the students in a more secure setting,” Jones wrote. “It is also my understanding that former Virginia Congressman Virgil Goode will soon be visiting the university. I recommend that the university take all actions necessary to ensure that future student-sponsored public policy discussions on the Chapel Hill campus do not get shut down by those with dissenting viewpoints.”