Today and Friday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., a soapbox for speakers will be placed at the Scramble Light intersection of McKinley and Riverside. The events are being held, along with other activities throughout the week, to commemorate National Freedom of Speech Week. The Soapbox Speaker events were organized by senior public history major Laife Janovyak.
"The events are simply an exercise of our freedom of speech," she said. "It's not about persuading people." There is no restriction on a speaker's topic or time length, and anyone can participate. Janovyak wanted to include speakers ranging not only from BSU students, faculty and administrators, but the Muncie community as well. Muncie mayor Dan Canan is even getting involved: He will be speaking at 11:15 a.m. on Friday.
Although the aim is to have fun with the events, being socially aware is important, Janovyak said.
"In our political system, we have to be aware of our rights and exercise them," she said.
Associate Professor of Telecommunications Dominic Caristi is a member of the committee, along with Janovyak, that is putting on the week's Freedom of Speech events.
"Laife is a tremendous asset to the committee. She took the [soapbox] idea and ran with it," he said.
Caristi met Janovyak through Fritz Dolak, who works in Bracken Library and saw her holding a public reading outside of the library, he said. Some of her reading topics have been on the history of the Middle East, regime changes, and the Patriot Act.
"My political involvement has just recently been getting noticed," Janovyak said.
Janovyak said her political activities make her an engaged human being and citizen.
"And it's not just a BSU thing," she said. "It's an American thing."
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