Members of Secular Humanists for Inquiry and Free Thought painted the Rock white early Thursday morning, planning to invite students throughout the day to write on it with markers.
SHIFT leaders said they would hand out flyers at the Rock telling students, “Say whatever the fuck you want.” They said students may write or draw anything on the Rock, from messages to advertisements to penises.
“I actually have no idea what people are going to write,” events coordinator Harry Noble said. “They can pour out their personal secrets, they can curse, they can tell us how much they hate us.”
The 10 students at the Rock said they were commemorating International Blasphemy Rights Day, which marks the day in 2005 when Danish newspaper Jyllands-Postenpublished 12 cartoons featuring the Prophet Muhammad, although many Muslims consider it offensive to display images of the prophet. The cartoons sparked protests and debates over free speech worldwide.
SHIFT President Cassy Byrne, a Weinberg junior, said other secular humanist groups across the country would spend the day making similar demonstrations, including drawing images of Muhammad.
When asked, SHIFT leaders said they would even allow students to draw hate symbols like swastikas on the Rock. But they were quick to add that they would not tolerate messages that threatened to harm others.
“As long as it is not a direct threat to anyone — obviously that is not protected speech,” Noble said.
The event comes just months after SHIFT members chalked caricatures of Muhammad on sidewalks across campus. The chalkings drew criticism from Muslim students and the administration.
University President Morton Schapiro even sat down with SHIFT members a few days after the chalkings to talk about faith and free speech.
“As upset as I am, we have to protect [first amendment rights],” he told them in May. “That’s the line. Where you draw the line, that’s what matters.”
This time, SHIFT hopes to invite controversy from other students rather than bring it to them, Noble said.
“We’ve done our blaspheming, and we’ve already established that we know how to do that,” the Weinberg senior said. “We’re letting everyone else take their shot now.”