Students, faculty and community members looking to voice their opinions about violence will get their outlet at 7 p.m. tonight.

The NIU Forensics’ Public Debate Organization will hold a town hall meeting entitled “Experiencing Perspectives on Campus and Community Violence” in the Capitol Room of the Holmes Student Center. The meeting is intended for those interested in talking about campus and community violence.

Several community officials have been invited to attend the event, including DeKalb Mayor Bessie Chronopoulos, John Hunter, the interim University Police chief, and DeKalb Police Chief Bill Feithen.

“We chose community violence because so many people have been complaining about violence on campus — especially Greek row,” said Josh Glick, a senior corporate communication major who helped to organize the event. “I don’t feel that this meeting will automatically change anything; it is just a step forward to help students and community officials realize that violence does exist on this campus and that we need to start taking some measures to combat it.”

Mayor Chronopolous thought the meeting was a good idea.

“We need to have more discussions like this, and it’s great to see the students so involved in such an important issue,” she said.

The event is part of NIU Forensics’ “Sharing Experiences” series, consisting of town hall meetings with a focus on personal experiences as a way of discovering the nature of social problems. The meeting will include panel and audience discussions, in an informal but structured manner with a mediator.

“We do not intend this meeting to be a debate, merely an outlet for students and the community to voice their opinions,” Glick said.

“Experiencing Perspectives on Campus and Community Violence”

Who: NIU Forensics

What: Town Hall meeting

When: Tonight at 7 p.m.

Where: Holmes Student Center Capitol Room

Why: Express your opinions on community violence