Conservative Student News

Having at least a year of collegiate studies under your belt, have you ever felt that your individual freedoms have been at risk here at St. Thomas? Have you ever felt ashamed after speaking up in class? Has a professor ever pressed an issue that did not fit into your values? Perhaps the current university system is not living up to its theoretical identity.

F.I.R.E. (Foundation for Individual Rights in Education), an organization fighting to defend and sustain student's rights across America's campuses, has this to say about the current system: "America's colleges and universities are, in theory, indispensable institutions in the development of critical minds and the furthering of individual rights, honest inquiry, and the core values of liberty, legal equality, and dignity. Instead, they often are the enemies of those qualities and pursuits, denying students and faculty their voices, their fundamental rights, and even their individual humanity."

Rather than being the strong institution it should be, the university has become a place where students are forced into group identity, radical political agendas, inequality, intrusion of the private conscience, and assaults upon moral rights and responsibilities. There are currently hundreds of students and professors who are victims of these wrongs. I would like to highlight a few to show how drastically some institutions are violating our constitutional rights. It also shows how liberally biased our media has become as most of these will never be featured on the evening news.

The prestigious John Hopkin's University is infamous as being the worst of the worst in this circle of fighting for students' rights. The University suspended 18 year-old Justin Park after the discovery of a politically incorrect Facebook party invitation. Park's "Halloween in the Hood" invitation to Sigma Chi's Halloween party invited guests to wear "copious amounts of ‘bling bling ice ice'" and listed Ice-T as the host.

Park was charged by the administration with counts of harassment, intimidation, and failure to respect the rights of others. His punishment was a one-year suspension, 300 hours of community service, written reports on 12 books, and diversity counseling.

The administration further instituted a new code of conduct for the university that declares, "rude, disrespectful behavior is unwelcome and will not be tolerated...Every member of our community will be held accountable for creating a welcoming workplace for all." This is simply ridiculous; it begs the question what exactly is or is not disrespectful? Are those not relative words? How will any student be able to speak their mind when they are fearful of expulsion?

At Valdosta University in Georgia, student T. Hayden Barnes lawfully protested against the university's decision to collect $30 million dollars from students for a new parking structure. His actions included posting fliers critical of the decision, sending e-mails to students and staff, writing letters to the administrators and an editorial to the school's newspaper. While these actions may have been an annoyance to the administration, they were in no way illegal. Each of his actions is protected by the Constitution.

The administration thought otherwise and took drastic and unconstitutional action. Barnes received notice of his expulsion in the form of a note slipped under his dorm room door. President of the university, Ronald Zacarri, wrote that Barnes "presented a clear and present danger to this campus". He also referred to an image Barnes created as "threatening". The image was a mixture of photos including a picture of a parking garage, a photo of Zaccari, a bulldozer, the words "No Blood for Oil" and the title "Zaccari Memorial Parking Garage," a reference inferring the president wanted the parking structure as his legacy. The letter stated Barnes could return as a student contingent upon his being cleared by a psychiatrist's word that he would not be a threat to himself or others, and he would continue attending therapy on a regular basis. Fortunately, the Georgia Board of Regents reversed the university's decision to expel Barnes.

These two cases are not secluded. Unconstitutional situations occur in hundreds of universities across the country and it is not limited to students. Recently, a professor was fired over holding a seminar on the causes of homosexuality in regards to nature versus nurture. A student complained to the administration because she felt offended and that the professor's comments were unscientific. Another professor, at another college, in another state, was also fired for using the slang term "wetback" in one of his lectures.

None of these situations called for any sort of termination. Perhaps some of these individuals were out of line, but being out of line in a legal manner is something that free speech allows for. This sort of action is particularly important on college campuses where young people are just beginning to experience their roles as independent citizens. Instead of rashly expelling these students or firing the professors, these situations are wonderful opportunities to open up dialogue for an exchange of opinions and ideas. Everyone is at a loss in these situations if they feel termination will solve a problem. Instead they should realize these cases are ripe for a learning experience.

How many people whom we consider to be great leaders and heroes were "out of line"? Were those who lived during the Revolution and dumped tea into the Boston River "in line"?

America is founded on the belief that individuals will stand up for what they believe and act for change. If this right is stifled, America is no different from a dictatorship where citizens will choose not to be free in fear of punishment. Universities have historically been especially important in the instillation of this freedom in future leaders of our country. They have been places of enormous strides in intellect, invention, and technology due to the structure of open dialogue fostered by our first amendment. We, as students, must fight to protect our rights in these treacherous times and places. We must never be afraid to speak our minds and we must never block this freedom in others.