If you are reading this between the hours of 1 p.m. and 5 p.m., a UNC commission is holding a public forum now to enact a hate crimes policy in the UNC system.

The threatening and racist messages painted in N.C. State’s Free Expression Tunnel inspired UNC System President Erskine Bowles to create the commission.

It would make sense to hold the meeting at N.C. State, considering it was the inspiration for the forum, right?

Apparently not, since it’s being held in Chapel Hill.

And the last meeting the commission had was Dec. 17, which it also held in Chapel Hill and during N.C. State’s fall 2008 graduation. 

It would be understandable to have a meeting in Chapel Hill, near UNC Board members’ offices, if it were enacting policy, but this is a public forum. It’s probable that most of the people at the meeting that are not part of a university’s task force will be from — you guessed it — UNC-Chapel Hill.

How is the commission supposed to hear opinions from students around North Carolina when the forums are held in the same place.

Even if the meeting was held on NCSU’s campus, many students would not be able to make to a 1 p.m. meeting because of classes. 

If it continues to have a series of meetings, they should not only be held at NCSU and UNC, but the commission should convene at universities across the state, from UNC-Asheville to UNC-Wilmington.

The time and place aren’t the only problems with this forum.

The commission has not spread word about it.

Even Student Body President Jay Dawkins said he only received a preliminary e-mail about the meeting and no subsequent information about the forum.

How is the commission supposed to collect the opinions of students from around the state if they won’t advertise it to student leaders?

We also ask the commission to not limit free speech, with an exception for threats. Hate speech may be unpopular, but it is still free speech. Limiting free speech on campus is infringing on our unalienable rights and is unconstitutional.

We encourage it to go into these meetings with an open mind and do outside research. A policy like this cannot be created based on few forums.

This forum is not something that should be sweeped under the rug. A potential hate crimes policy is serious and students must discuss all sides. Whatever your opinion on it is, it is vital that everyone gets his/her voice heard.