Students held a rally Wednesday afternoon to show unity in their opposition to two opinion articles recently published in the Campus Press that one speaker referred to as examples of “institutional racism.”

The articles, entitled “If it’s war the Asians want…” by assistant opinion editor Max Karson and “No hablo ingles” by staff writer Lauren Geary sparked outrage amongst CU students and faculty, leading to calls for the resignation of those involved in their publication.

“I find it to be hate speech,” said UCSU Director of Diversity Affairs John Ali Sharza. “It’s disturbing, disgusting.”

Some students affected by the article voiced concerns for their safety, including David Chiu, a senior chemical engineering major.

“After this incident, I feel unsafe when I step on this campus,” Chiu said.

A number of CU students, faculty and community members attended the rally, including UCSU Tri-Exec Charles Gilford and Aurora City Councilman Ryan Frazier.

During his speech, Gilford said he was happy to see that people of all races attended the rally.

“If you look around at each other, the makeup is different, and that is something that is beautiful,” Gilford said.

Gilford said while most people agree that freedom of speech is an essential freedom, it was no excuse for the publication of the articles by Karson and Geary.

“Exercise your freedom of speech, but without infringing on others’ freedom for the pursuit of happiness,” Gilford said.

A letter from the editors of the Campus Press said Karson’s article was meant as satire, and apologized for those who were hurt or offended by its publication. A separate letter was later published by editors who did not support the publication of the article.