by Rebecca Harrelson
Several UNCG department heads and a considerable number of faculty members were among about 140 people who participated in a silent vigil against the 22 felony charges brought against former employees Lyda Carpen, Chris English and Dave Wilson.
Emotions were shared between faculty and the families of the accused who came to the silent protest, and there was an air of hope paralleled with frustration.
Sociology professor Stephen Sills said he can’t stand by and watch fellow employees be prosecuted for “the things that I do and have the privilege to do,” referring to the charges that the “UNCG 3″ face regarding operating a side business.
“As a sociologist and a social activist we know that it takes a collective action to get any kind of change to occur,” Sills said. “If faculty members can write books [or] engage in consulting work… why do the other types of staff not have that option?”
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