We recently discussed the allegations of a conservative college newspaper at Dartmouth that “Black Lives Matter” protesters burst into the Baker-Berry Library on the university’s campus in Hanover, New Hampshire and yelled racial epithets and prevented students from studying. The incident was partially caught on videotape and showed protesters abusing students. At the time, I questioned why the university seemed so silent and reticent about allegations of racist statements and even physical threats reported by other students. According to some reports, the university has now acted . . . to apologize to the students who burst into the library, prevented other students from studying, and allegedly yelled racial epithets.
The Dartmouth reports that the university has taken no action because no one has filed a criminal complaint. On its face, this is odd since there is a videotape of the disruptive protest and there are Dartmouth students being quoted as saying that they were confronted with protesters chanted phrases such as “F**k you, you filthy white f**ks!” “F**k you and your comfort!” and “F**k you, you racist shits!” If such reports existed of student yelling racist remarks about black students, would the university wait for a criminal charge to investigate?
Instead, The Dartmouth says that Vice provost for student affairs Inge-Lise Ameer “apologized to students who engaged in the protest for the negative responses and media coverage that they have received.” I have not been able to find any statement from Ameer denouncing the protesters who abused Dartmouth students or a call to determine if these protesters hurled racist insults at students. Indeed, I have not seen any such statement from the school as a whole or from President Philip Hanlon.
Ameer is quoted as saying that “There’s a whole conservative world out there that’s not being very nice” and dismissed the incident as nothing more than a “peaceful meeting” turned “political protest.” It is hard to imagine the same response had the alleged racial epithets and the blocking of students were directed at minorities at the school.
Ameer was just appointed this year and is not quoted as expressing any criticism of the protesters in their actions toward other students who simply wanted to study.
There is a rising concern of the double standard that is taking hold on our campuses, a concern that I share. We have been following the controversy surrounding the confrontation of Feminist Studies Associate Professor Mireille Miller-Young with pro-life advocates on campus. Miller-Young led her students in attacking the pro-life display, stealing their display, and then committing battery on one of the young women. Thrin Short, 16, and her sister Joan, 21, filed complaints and Miller-Young was charged with criminal conduct including Theft From Person; Battery; and Vandalism. Miller-Young was convicted and sentenced in August. Despite the shocking conduct of Miller-Young and the clear violation of the most fundamental values for all academics in guaranteeing free speech and associational rights, the faculty overwhelmingly supported Miller-Young and the university decided not to impose any meaningful discipline. She has kept her job when many have asked if battery committed by a male professor against pro-choice advocates in the same circumstance would have rallied the university and resulted in the same approach.
Likewise, we have discussed racist remarks published by academics that have been dismissed by universities while statements viewed as discriminatory toward minorities have led to calls of termination. Again, there is a concern of the standard being applied.
This conflict was readily apparent in a confrontation where a faculty member at Yale was surrounded by hostile students because he merely questioned the campaign to stop students from wearing a variety of Halloween costumes and voiced the countervailing view of free speech. The controversy was triggered by his wife. In response to a campaign against wearing “culturally unaware and insensitive” costumes, Erika Christakis, a faculty member and an administrator at a student residence, wrote an email to students living in her residence hall about some students who felt “frustrated” by the official advice on Halloween costumes. She asked “Is there no room anymore for a child or young person to be a little bit obnoxious … a little bit inappropriate or provocative or, yes, offensive? American universities were once a safe space not only for maturation but also for a certain regressive, or even transgressive, experience; increasingly, it seems, they have become places of censure and prohibition.”
That seems a legitimate point to raise but the response at Yale was to call for her to be fired. Her husband was then surrounded while walking across campus. Nicholas Christakis, a faculty member who works in the same residential college, faced a large group of students demanding that he apologize. He remains calm and reasoned while students tell him to shut up and yell at him in this videotape:
I find the abusive conduct of the student, particularly the woman at the center of the video, to be shocking and antithetical to the academic environment. Yet, again, there has been virtually no condemnation of such behavior. Peter Salovey, the president of Yale, met with students and expressed how “deeply troubled” he was in speaking with students of color who were “in great distress.” I certainly understand that concern but how about the faculty members who are facing attacks and demands that they be silent or resign or be fired?
The response at Dartmouth is only the latest in this troubling trend. When a college or university remains silent in the face of such allegations (including racial epithets and trapping students), we are facing a serious crisis in our schools. I can understand if the school wants to investigate the allegations. However, it appears that the school has confined its attention to whether criminal charges have been brought — a focus not seen at schools like Missouri in forcing the resignation of the President in the face of allegations of racial epithets directed at black students. It would seem sufficient that your campus newspaper has interviewed students who say that they were prevented from studying, calls racist names, and in some cases not allowed to leave.
There is a growing intolerance and orthodoxy that is taking hold on our campuses. Faculty are chilled by scenes like the one at Yale where faculty are told to “be quiet” and accept public shaming for questioning certain policies or practices. We need to look at these conflicts before we lose essential elements of free speech, civility, and academic freedom that have long been the foundation for our academic institutions.
UPDATE:
The college republicans have sent the following letter to the University President:
An Open Letter to President Hanlon and the Trustees of Dartmouth CollegeIt is with great sadness and the utmost disappointment that we find ourselves having to write this letter. As the Dartmouth College Republicans, we often feel discriminated against by the administration and unwelcome on this campus. As conservative students, we have often felt marginalized in this community. In light of an especially toxic campus environment, a seriously concerning incident has come to our attention: at a recent public event held on the evening of Monday, November 16, Vice Provost Inge-Lise Ameer stated, “There’s a whole conservative world out there that’s not very nice.” Furthermore, students at that meeting repeatedly violated Dartmouth’s Principle of Community by referring to conservatives by slurs such as “f***ing racists,” which Ameer did little to stop.Unfortunately, her recent comments and actions are only the latest manifestation of a campus culture that dismisses conservative voices. We are now at the point where the vast majority of conservative students on campus do not feel comfortable expressing their views. Even selfidentification as a conservative can invite serious backlash. Many of us have been called bigoted, racist, and homophobic — among other epithets — for simply stating our opinions. Thus, it is especially concerning that a senior administrator would casually encourage a culture of prejudice against conservatives on this campus.At the same public event, Vice Provost Ameer also stated, “If you’re feeling unsafe and you’re not feeling like you are getting responded to then contact me directly and we will deal with it because that is not right.” We feel unsafe, and we feel that we are not being responded to. The same resources made available to the Black Lives Matter protesters, including regular meetings with senior administrators, should be made available to conservative students on campus. An open and polite dialogue is essential to any college campus. It is difficult enough to be a conservative on any college campus, and it is simply unacceptable that any administrator would reinforce such a hostile climate.We urge Vice Provost Ameer to condemn the actions and words of protesters and to send an open and public apology to all of campus, retracting her previous statements on conservatives and reaffirming the need to respect conservative students and their opinions.
Roy,
I would not be the least disappointed if employers refuse to recruit candidates with degrees from universities supporting this behavior. These potential members of the workforce are toxic to their school culture and they will be toxic in a business culture as well. As I said yesterday, until the school’s begin to see a negative financial impact then they will not be motivated to change.
Bill H,
Video @ 0:32 mark. Girl student goes nuts, cursing and swearing. Would a fortune 500 company want her as employee? No. Safe bet. Hire H-1B Visa offshore, less pay & aggravation.
Once upon a time, in a galaxy far away, universities had a code of conduct for students. This code included respect for faculty, etc. Students would be expelled for violating the code. The concept of “academic freedom” was instituted so that faculty could teach/espouse ideas that were not mainstream or popular. If I were this faculty member, I would transfer to a community college. It will be interesting to see how these students perform once in the work force. Will they scream at their boss? Yell racism or discrimination?
What kind of free speech is it when you scream “Be quiet” at your opponent and do not allow him to speak at all, as we see in that clip? What kind of free speech is it when every time he opens his mouth you simply shout him down, as we see constantly in political discourse?
Was saying “call a spade a spade” Freudian?
This has more to do with stupidity than anything else. This was a perfect time for the leftist what’sit to just stand by and do nothing. Regardless of stance that would have been the tactical move. The rant would have happened and there would have been a disconnect over time between her allowing the disturbance and her lack of action. Now it has become obvious that Ameer has outed herself as inept and/or a coward. Let’s call a spade a spade and cut to the bone. The primary rights, responsibilities, and obligations on campus are to allow, encourage, and assist students to learn. The quadrangle is the perfect place to rant and rave. Ranting and raving is always a good thing when one can get closer to listen and then walk away if one so desires, to go somewhere quiet and study. What a stupid and backward woman.
Nick: You are correct.
The pendulum is swinging left and still has momentum.
But at some point, the pendulum will swing right and then the protesters will have something to howl about.
Here is my one suggestion, watch Brietbart’s final film, “Occupy Unmasked.” He predicted that this would happen.
Liberal fascism, college style.
The university administration agrees with these fascist methods, shutting down its library, screaming swear words at students, bringing some of them to tears.
A university has one job: educate.
But they have decided instead to indoctrinate.
Students aren’t allowed to study, they must join the protest.
Universities need to have their funding drastically reduced or closed altogether.
To me, there is something quite ironic (or moronic) about a cause that has a core principle that they do not feel safe, and their method of displaying this is to make other innocent students feel unsafe. Seems these misguided individuals need to take a logic class.
The BLM is a role reversal of the Jim Crow era. Who will be the white’s civil rights leader? Also, regarding these stories that reflect a double-standard. The reasonable, rational questions are being asked of these administrators but do we ever get an answer? Seriously, when asking if whites protested through the library harassing black students, if they would also receive an apology, what is the answer from the administrator? What is her logic, what is her reasoning? What is her justification? Why isn’t she being forced to resign? Where is the call for her job? PROTEST BACK!!!
It’s 1979. I’m enrolled at a community college for engineering science. Use GI bill of rights to pay tuition. Jimmy Carter is president.
I take a required course elective, computer science, taught by Dr. Lee (Taiwanese). Class size is about 34. 3 are Vets, Army (me), Navy and Air Force. The rest are Iranian.
Dr. Lee thinks Vets are stupid. He constantly challenge us Vets. I’m pulled aside and Dr. Lee asks how I figured out a critical problem and get it solved so fast by me for computer project.
This is 50% of grade for the semester. Dr. Lee also asks why do Iranian student computer programs look like mine. I told Dr. Lee, after debugging,
I throw away printout, then Iranians go into garbage can, get printout and copy it.
Then there was the Iran hostage crisis. 52 U.S. diplomats held hostage.
Iranian students indicated support for hostage taking. Riots and fights broke out on campus. Dr. Lee gave me an A+ and said, I don’t want to mess with you on the battlefield.
I protested against things such as the ROTC being present and in full operation on campus. Students would surround the ROTC halls and scream and rant. “Dumb” might have been part of the rant. But in many in many campus in America the ROTC was forced to leave the campus and not recruit or operate. It was kind of akin to demonstrating against the KKK if they had a headquarters and recruited on campus. We never went into the libraries and interrupted studies. Or went into dorms and committed coitus interruptis. (Latin)
In my day, or am I meant to use the phrase “Back in the Day,” a ruckus like that in the Library would have triggered a call to the campus police and we would have been restrained and escorted OUT. The following week, we would have been shown the door by an ad hoc faculty committee, with the admonishment to return, after a semester or two, when you have thought through some of the simple rules of civil behavior.
Campus unrest and inner city riots and looting produced Richard Nixon as President in 1968. The most Nixon like candidate I see is Cruz. Just sayn’.
The Cultural Revolution has arrived. Soon they will be marching with their little Red Books and shaming the teachers. Hanging some and sending the rest to the farms to work. Thank you Obama.
These young students are being taught a very disturbing lesson: if you claim victimhood you can getaway with “murder”. Unfortunately that lesson has been well learned by terrorists who can always rely on someone to excuse their crimes.
Here these students were allowed to abuse fellow students because they claim the victim status of being black and the targets of their abuse are white. Black students at Dartmouth….yes victims indeed. If a white student had done the same to a black student he or she would be shown the door and possibly arrested.
Just a comment on semantics. It was interesting to see the “turn” of the word “orthodoxy.” The devolution of free speech is becoming the new orthodoxy. Now I don’t take issue with the use of the term…it’s just interesting. It also provides grist for personal conversation. In a loose sense it is akin to comparing liberal and conservative in the USSR at the height of the Stalin era. The meanings were reversed when compared to the West.
People tolerate a double-standard when they don’t believe that the victim is truly being hurt. For example, it’s okay to make “dumb blond” jokes because nobody truly believes that naturally blond people (Germans, Scandinavians) are dumb. But you could never make a “dumb Mexican” or “dumb black” joke because those groups are insecure about their intellectual abilities in comparison with whites (and Asians). Similarly, students at elite colleges who are there only because of AA and are being coddled in light-weight majors recognize that they are not perceived as being equal to the regular students and that their prospects upon graduation are not all that promising. Hence, the hostility toward the institution and the more successful students.
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