Friday, September 10, 2004

News to me: Many professors are liberal bigots

Okay, I just found more evidence of my 'bubbled' life. I just read an article on Yahoo news. In it I learned that in Colorado Universities conservative students are being discriminated against. I'll share a few of the examples given in the article:

"University of Colorado law student Mario Nicholas said a professor called him a Nazi after Nicholas complained when the professor told the class that "the `R' in Republican stands for racist." The professor was chastised by the dean but not suspended. "

"Metro State student William Pierce said he filed a grievance after a professor accused him of spying on the class for Republicans intent on enforcing the new policy. "

I go to Brigham Young University. It is a religiously funded university. As such only members of the LDS Church can be tenured professors. Which means that we have a very conservative faculty here. Well, comparatively. Many LDS people are ultra conservative and might disagree. So all I am used to is moderate professors who respect all ideas. But until today I didn't know this was not so of all colleges and universities. And I'm not referring to the conservative point. I'm talking about professors being moderate and respectful of all ideas.

The article talks about a professor that was forced out the classroom with death threats. He now sleeps with a rifle under his bed. I do not condone death threats or getting results through fear. And the 'conservative' students who did that not only hurt their cause, but hurt their lives.

But, such comments as calling a student a Nazi for any reason is not acceptable. The employers of such faculty need to evaluate their performance and if they cannot come to acceptable terms, let them go. That kind of environment is not conducive to learning for any type of student. Perhaps it is just my own experience, but professorship is not supposed to be a platform for expressing political views. Unless of course it is political science. And then it should be unbiased.

Students should not be judged on their political views.

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