And they do so using the left's own tactics and also in the spirit of the
radical left wing.
Ya gotta just love it!

http://courttv.com/news/2004/1220/students_ap.html#continue
Conservative students sue over academic freedom
At the University of North Carolina, three incoming freshmen sue over a
reading assignment they say offends their Christian beliefs.

In Colorado and Indiana, a national conservative group
publicizes student allegations of left-wing bias by
professors. Faculty get hate mail and are pictured in
mock "wanted" posters; at least one college says a teacher
received a death threat.

And they do so using the left's own tactics and also in the spirit of the
radical left wing.

Ya gotta just love it!

LN

http://courttv.com/news/2004/1220/students_ap.html#continue


Conservative students sue over academic freedom

And they do so using the left's own tactics and also in the spirit of the
radical left wing.

Ya gotta just love it!

LN

http://courttv.com/news/2004/1220/students_ap.html#continue


Conservative students sue over academic freedom

At the University of North Carolina, three incoming freshmen sue over a
reading assignment they say offends their Christian beliefs.
In Colorado and Indiana, a national conservative group publicizes student
allegations of left-wing bias by professors. Faculty get hate mail and are
pictured in mock "wanted" posters; at least one college says a teacher
received a death threat.

And at Columbia University in New York, a documentary film alleging that
teachers intimidate students who support Israel draws the attention of
administrators.

The three episodes differ in important ways, but all touch on an issue of
growing prominence on college campuses.



Traditionally, clashes over academic freedom have pitted politicians or
administrators against instructors who wanted to express their opinions

teach as they saw fit. But increasingly, it is students who are invoking
academic freedom, claiming biased professors are violating their right to

classroom free from indoctrination.

In many ways, the trend echoes past campus conflicts -- but turns them
around. Once, it was liberal campus activists who cited the importance of
"diversity" in pressing their agendas for curriculum change. Now,
conservatives have adopted much of the same language in calling for a
greater openness to their viewpoints.

Similarly, academic freedom guidelines have traditionally been cited to
protect left-leaning students from punishment for disagreeing with

about such issues as American neutrality before World War II and U.S.
involvement in Vietnam. Now, those same guidelines are being invoked by
conservative students who support the war in Iraq.

To many professors, there's a new and deeply troubling aspect to this

chapter in the debate over academic freedom: students trying to dictate

they don't want to be taught.

"Even the most contentious or disaffected of students in the '60s or early
'70s never really pressed this kind of issue," said Robert O'Neil, former
president of the University of Virginia and now director of the Thomas
Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression.

Those behind the trend call it an antidote to the overwhelming liberal
dominance of university faculties. But many educators, while agreeing
students should never feel bullied, worry that they just want to avoid
exposure to ideas that challenge their core beliefs -- an essential part

education.

Some also fear teachers will shy away from sensitive topics, or fend off
criticism by "balancing" their syllabuses with opposing viewpoints, even

they represent inferior scholarship.

"Faculty retrench. They are less willing to discuss contemporary problems
and I think everyone loses out," said Joe Losco, a professor of political
science at Ball State University in Indiana who has supported two

targeted for alleged bias. "It puts a chill in the air."

Conservatives say a chill is in order.

A recent study by Santa Clara University researcher Daniel Klein estimated
that among social science and humanities faculty members nationwide,
Democrats outnumber Republicans by at least seven to one; in some fields
it's as high as 30 to one. And in the last election, the two employers

workers contributed the most to Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign

the University of California system and Harvard University.

Many teachers insist personal politics don't affect teaching. But in a
recent survey of students at 50 top schools by the American Council of
Trustees and Alumni, a group that has argued there is too little
intellectual diversity on campuses, 49 percent reported at least some
professors frequently commented on politics in class even if it was

the subject matter.

Thirty-one percent said they felt there were some courses in which they
needed to agree with a professor's political or social views to get a good
grade.

Leading the movement is the group Students for Academic Freedom, with
chapters on 135 campuses and close ties to David Horowitz, a one-time
liberal campus activist turned conservative agitator. The group posts
student complaints on its Web site about alleged episodes of grading bias
and unbalanced, anti-American propaganda by professors -- often in

such as literature, in which it's off-topic.

Instructors "need to make students aware of the spectrum of scholarly
opinion," Horowitz said. "You can't get a good education if you're only
getting half the story."

Conservatives claim they are discouraged from expressing their views in
class, and are even blackballed from graduate school slots and jobs.

"I feel like (faculty) are so disconnected from students that they do

things and they can just get away with them," said Kris Wampler, who
recently publicly identified himself as one of the students who sued the
University of North Carolina. Now a junior, he objected when all incoming
students were assigned to read a book about the Quran before they got to
campus.

"A lot of students feel like they're being discriminated against," he

So far, his and other efforts are having mixed results. At UNC, the

lost their legal case, but the university no longer uses the word

in describing the reading program for incoming students (the plaintiffs'
main objection).

In Colorado, conservatives withdrew a legislative proposal for an

bill of rights" backed by Horowitz, but only after state universities

to adopt its principles.

At Ball State, the school's provost sided with Professor George Wolfe

a student published complaints about Wolfe's peace studies course, but the
episode has attracted local attention. Horowitz and backers of the

bill of rights plan to introduce it in the Indiana legislature -- as well

in up to 20 other states.

At Columbia, anguished debate followed the screening of a film by an
advocacy group called The David Project that alleges some faculty violate
students' rights by using the classroom as a platform for anti-Israeli
political propaganda (one Israeli student claims a professor taunted him

asking, "How many Palestinians did you kill?"). Administrators responded
this month by setting up a new committee to investigate students

In the wider debate, both sides cite the guidelines on academic freedom
first set out in 1915 by the American Association of University

The objecting students emphasize the portion calling on teachers to "set
forth justly ... the divergent opinions of other investigators." But many
teachers note the guidelines also say instructors need not "hide (their)

opinions under a mountain of equivocal verbiage," and that their job is
teaching students "to think for themselves."

Horowitz believes the AAUP, which opposes his bill of rights, and liberals
in general are now the establishment and have abandoned their commitment

real diversity and student rights.

But critics say Horowitz is pushing a political agenda, not an academic

"It's often phrased in the language of academic freedom. That's what's so
strange about it," said Ellen Schrecker, a Yeshiva University historian

has written about academic freedom during the McCarthy area. "What they're
saying is, 'We want people to reflect our point of view."'

Horowitz's critics also insist his campaign is getting more attention than
it deserves, riling conservative bloggers but attracting little alarm from
most students. They insist even most liberal professors give fair grades

conservative students who work hard and support their arguments.

Often, the facts of particular cases are disputed. At Ball State, senior
Brett Mock published a detailed account accusing Wolfe of anti-Americanism
in a peace studies class and of refusing to tolerate the view that the

invasion of Iraq might have been justified. In a telephone interview,

vigorously disputed Mock's allegations. He provided copies of a letter of
support from other students in the class, and from the provost saying she
had found nothing wrong with the course.

Horowitz, who has also criticized Ball State's program, had little

when asked if Wolfe deserved to get hate e-mails from strangers.

"These people are such sissies," he said. "I get hate mail every single

What can I do about it? It's called the Internet."

And they do so using the left's own tactics and also in the spirit of the
radical left wing.

Ya gotta just love it!

LN

http://courttv.com/news/2004/1220/students_ap.html#continue


Conservative students sue over academic freedom

At the University of North Carolina, three incoming freshmen sue over a
reading assignment they say offends their Christian beliefs.
In Colorado and Indiana, a national conservative group publicizes student
allegations of left-wing bias by professors. Faculty get hate mail and are
pictured in mock "wanted" posters; at least one college says a teacher
received a death threat.

And at Columbia University in New York, a documentary film alleging that
teachers intimidate students who support Israel draws the attention of
administrators.

The three episodes differ in important ways, but all touch on an issue of
growing prominence on college campuses.



Traditionally, clashes over academic freedom have pitted politicians or
administrators against instructors who wanted to express their opinions and
teach as they saw fit. But increasingly, it is students who are invoking
academic freedom, claiming biased professors are violating their right to a
classroom free from indoctrination.

In many ways, the trend echoes past campus conflicts -- but turns them
around. Once, it was liberal campus activists who cited the importance of
"diversity" in pressing their agendas for curriculum change. Now,
conservatives have adopted much of the same language in calling for a
greater openness to their viewpoints.

Similarly, academic freedom guidelines have traditionally been cited to
protect left-leaning students from punishment for disagreeing with teachers
about such issues as American neutrality before World War II and U.S.
involvement in Vietnam. Now, those same guidelines are being invoked by
conservative students who support the war in Iraq.

To many professors, there's a new and deeply troubling aspect to this latest
chapter in the debate over academic freedom: students trying to dictate what
they don't want to be taught.

"Even the most contentious or disaffected of students in the '60s or early
'70s never really pressed this kind of issue," said Robert O'Neil, former
president of the University of Virginia and now director of the Thomas
Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression.

Those behind the trend call it an antidote to the overwhelming liberal
dominance of university faculties. But many educators, while agreeing
students should never feel bullied, worry that they just want to avoid
exposure to ideas that challenge their core beliefs -- an essential part of
education.

Some also fear teachers will shy away from sensitive topics, or fend off
criticism by "balancing" their syllabuses with opposing viewpoints, even if
they represent inferior scholarship.

"Faculty retrench. They are less willing to discuss contemporary problems
and I think everyone loses out," said Joe Losco, a professor of political
science at Ball State University in Indiana who has supported two colleagues
targeted for alleged bias. "It puts a chill in the air."

Conservatives say a chill is in order.

A recent study by Santa Clara University researcher Daniel Klein estimated
that among social science and humanities faculty members nationwide,
Democrats outnumber Republicans by at least seven to one; in some fields
it's as high as 30 to one. And in the last election, the two employers whose
workers contributed the most to Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign were
the University of California system and Harvard University.

Many teachers insist personal politics don't affect teaching. But in a
recent survey of students at 50 top schools by the American Council of
Trustees and Alumni, a group that has argued there is too little
intellectual diversity on campuses, 49 percent reported at least some
professors frequently commented on politics in class even if it was outside
the subject matter.

Thirty-one percent said they felt there were some courses in which they
needed to agree with a professor's political or social views to get a good
grade.

Leading the movement is the group Students for Academic Freedom, with
chapters on 135 campuses and close ties to David Horowitz, a one-time
liberal campus activist turned conservative agitator. The group posts
student complaints on its Web site about alleged episodes of grading bias
and unbalanced, anti-American propaganda by professors -- often in classes,
such as literature, in which it's off-topic.

Instructors "need to make students aware of the spectrum of scholarly
opinion," Horowitz said. "You can't get a good education if you're only
getting half the story."

Conservatives claim they are discouraged from expressing their views in
class, and are even blackballed from graduate school slots and jobs.

"I feel like (faculty) are so disconnected from students that they do these
things and they can just get away with them," said Kris Wampler, who
recently publicly identified himself as one of the students who sued the
University of North Carolina. Now a junior, he objected when all incoming
students were assigned to read a book about the Quran before they got to
campus.

"A lot of students feel like they're being discriminated against," he said.

So far, his and other efforts are having mixed results. At UNC, the students
lost their legal case, but the university no longer uses the word "required"
in describing the reading program for incoming students (the plaintiffs'
main objection).

In Colorado, conservatives withdrew a legislative proposal for an "academic
bill of rights" backed by Horowitz, but only after state universities agreed
to adopt its principles.

At Ball State, the school's provost sided with Professor George Wolfe after
a student published complaints about Wolfe's peace studies course, but the
episode has attracted local attention. Horowitz and backers of the academic
bill of rights plan to introduce it in the Indiana legislature -- as well as
in up to 20 other states.

At Columbia, anguished debate followed the screening of a film by an
advocacy group called The David Project that alleges some faculty violate
students' rights by using the classroom as a platform for anti-Israeli
political propaganda (one Israeli student claims a professor taunted him by
asking, "How many Palestinians did you kill?"). Administrators responded
this month by setting up a new committee to investigate students complaints.

In the wider debate, both sides cite the guidelines on academic freedom
first set out in 1915 by the American Association of University Professors.

The objecting students emphasize the portion calling on teachers to "set
forth justly ... the divergent opinions of other investigators." But many
teachers note the guidelines also say instructors need not "hide (their) own
opinions under a mountain of equivocal verbiage," and that their job is
teaching students "to think for themselves."

Horowitz believes the AAUP, which opposes his bill of rights, and liberals
in general are now the establishment and have abandoned their commitment to
real diversity and student rights.

But critics say Horowitz is pushing a political agenda, not an academic one.

"It's often phrased in the language of academic freedom. That's what's so
strange about it," said Ellen Schrecker, a Yeshiva University historian who
has written about academic freedom during the McCarthy area. "What they're
saying is, 'We want people to reflect our point of view."'

Horowitz's critics also insist his campaign is getting more attention than
it deserves, riling conservative bloggers but attracting little alarm from
most students. They insist even most liberal professors give fair grades to
conservative students who work hard and support their arguments.

Often, the facts of particular cases are disputed. At Ball State, senior
Brett Mock published a detailed account accusing Wolfe of anti-Americanism
in a peace studies class and of refusing to tolerate the view that the U.S.
invasion of Iraq might have been justified. In a telephone interview, Wolfe
vigorously disputed Mock's allegations. He provided copies of a letter of
support from other students in the class, and from the provost saying she
had found nothing wrong with the course.

Horowitz, who has also criticized Ball State's program, had little sympathy
when asked if Wolfe deserved to get hate e-mails from strangers.

"These people are such sissies," he said. "I get hate mail every single day.
What can I do about it? It's called the Internet."

And they do so using the left's own tactics and also in the spirit of the
radical left wing.

Ya gotta just love it!

LN

http://courttv.com/news/2004/1220/students_ap.html#continue


Conservative students sue over academic freedom

At the University of North Carolina, three incoming freshmen sue over a
reading assignment they say offends their Christian beliefs.

In Colorado and Indiana, a national conservative group publicizes student
allegations of left-wing bias by professors.

pictured in mock "wanted" posters; at least one college says a teacher
received a death threat.

And at Columbia University in New York, a documentary film alleging that
teachers intimidate students who support Israel draws the attention of
administrators.

The three episodes differ in important ways, but all touch on an issue of
growing prominence on college campuses.