University of Iowa President Bruce Harreld issued a statement on Wednesdays’s storming of the U.S. Capitol by pro-Trump demonstrators, calling on the university community to remain calm. 

Harreld issued his statement via a campuswide email Wednesday evening. 

“Civil discourse and the respectful exchange of ideas are the cornerstones of higher education and of this great institution,” Harreld said. “We must demonstrate those values in the coming days, weeks, and months.”

On Wednesday afternoon, as a group of Republican members of Congress challenged the results of the presidential election on baseless claims of fraud, a crowd of pro-Trump demonstrators broke through barricades and windows to enter the Capitol. 

Members of Congress and staff were forced to shelter in place as rioters entered the building. One woman was shot and killed on Capitol grounds, though her identity and the circumstance surrounding the shooting is unknown.

Harreld said the electoral process outlined by the constitution is crucial to American democracy, and called for the UI community to move forward peacefully.

“No matter the political belief or issue or ideology behind them, when peaceful protests spiral out of control, it can only ever lead to tragedy,” Harreld said. “While our democracy is strong, it also is delicate and we must treat it with the utmost care so that it may, in turn, protect us.”