While some, including an official with the local chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, praised the school’s response, others said it went too far.
\nCHICAGO \u2014 A Minnesota university\u2019s decision to dismiss a professor for including depictions of the Prophet Muhammad in a world art course has put the small, private school at the center of a debate over how to include controversial material in college courses while respecting students\u2019 personal relationship to the material.
\nMonths after the images were shown in an online class, the chair of Hamline University\u2019s Board of Trustees said Friday that the trustees were reviewing the university\u2019s policies and its responses to both student complaints and faculty concerns about academic freedom. Also Friday, a national civil rights organization for Muslims\u00a0rebuked accusations that the professor\u2019s behavior was Islamophobic.
\nThe conflict began in October when adjunct professor Erika L\u00f3pez Prater included a 14th-century painting depicting the Prophet Muhammad in a lesson on Islamic art, prompting a Muslim student in the class to complain to the university, according to media reports and advocacy groups that have backed either the professor or student.
\nL\u00f3pez Prater was aware that for many Muslims, visual depictions of the Prophet Muhammad violate their faith. A course syllabus she has shown in media interviews noted that students would view images of religious figures, including the Prophet Muhammad. The syllabus also included an offer to work with students uncomfortable with viewing those images.
\nShe also warned the class immediately before showing the depiction of the Prophet Muhammad. Her goal, L\u00f3pez Prater said this week, was to teach students about the \u201crich diversity\u201d of attitudes toward such imagery.<\/p>\n