A New York City university apologized to its Hillel following complaints that the administration pressured the Jewish center into canceling a controversial film on radical Islam. In an open letter Monday, Pace University President David Caputo said that “no such coercion or intimidation was intended” and apologized “for any action that may have unfortunately led to that belief. I also want to apologize for any hurt we may have caused Michael and other members of Hillel.”Pace Hillel President Michael Abdurakhmanov told The New York Times in January that following complaints by a Muslim student group, a dean told him not to show “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West.” If the film were shown, the dean allegedly said, police could be called in and Hillel members could be considered suspects in recent Islamophobic acts.The film has been scheduled for an April screening at the Pace campus in Manhattan.
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