Thu 30 Nov 2006
This story reminded me of the sorts of trouble we Eph rightwingers made on campus 20 years ago.
The College Republicans at Boston University are protesting minority scholarships by offering the $250 Caucasian Achievement and Recognition Scholarship, CBS4 reported. The scholarship, being criticized by some on campus as insensitive, is restricted to those who are at least one-fourth white and who write two essays — one on their background and one on “what it means to you to be a Caucasian-American today.”
Question: Is there an active Republican/conservative/libertarian student organization at Williams today? The website for the Garfield Republican Club seems untouched in 3 years, although it’s blog has an entry from 2004 and Amanda Boote ‘07 (former GRC President?) was active on WSO back then.
If there are no active rightwingers on campus, I hope that the Admissions Office accepts at least a few, or else political discussion among students will become as narrow as that among faculty! 
November 30th, 2006 at 9:10 am
The Admissions Office each year has reserved 5 places for Cro-Magnons with no more than planning ability and tool making skill but makes no concessions specifically for Republicans. Of course, about 60% of Republicans could qualify for the Cro-Magnon carve out.
November 30th, 2006 at 12:11 pm
good one, frank! you totally called the GOP out. want to meet at the faculty club tonight to celebrate this subtle tweak over some port and stilton?
November 30th, 2006 at 1:34 pm
Here is what I wrote about this exact issue over at dcat earlier in the month:
“Meanwhile, a Republican student group at Boston University has taken it upon themselves to offer scholarships for whites to point out what they call “the absurdity of any race-based scholarship.” There is absurdity afoot at BU, but it is not on the part of BU’s support of whatever (and I would bet my lunch their numbers and scope are overstated) race-based scholarships Commonwealth Avenue’s great private university offers. Here is the deal: The purpose of race-based scholarships is to do two things: To bring in members of historically underrepresented groups to campus who might otherwise go elsewhere and to close gaps that historic protection of whites created. The idea that white students somehow represent a morally equivalent group to black Americans is an odd reading of history and of the concept of “absurdity.” But beyond that, you get with your racialist selves, BU Republicans. Offer a scholarship to whomever you would like. Because your approach is certainly going to do wonders for the perception of the GOP among the rest of us, and surely won’t apply any stigma at all for the student recipients of your let’s-hamhandedly-prove-a-point scholarships in the larger community. There are ways to discuss and debate affirmative action. I would submit that cheap stunts probably are not the way to go. The BU student Republicans have just added to the Jackassization of the current political climate without offering anything of substance. Huzzah.”
dcat
November 30th, 2006 at 2:45 pm
This makes about as much sense as offering special need-based financial aid to students from wealthy suburbs whose families at least half a million per annum.
November 30th, 2006 at 3:06 pm
Derek: The BU guys caused you to react as they wanted. If ignored, provocation is not much fun and conequently is likely to evaporate over time. Mike: It is most probable that I come from a more lower middle class background than you - where time is passed at the local tavern after a day of working with one’s hands via a shot, a draft, pickled pig’s knuckles and ball scores as the chosen refreshments and topic of conversation.
November 30th, 2006 at 3:17 pm
Frank –
You are probably right, of course, but the media has already drawn attention to it, at which point I feel something of a responsibility to respond. There are discussions to be had about affirmative action. Whitey trying to play the beleaguered victim card is not the path I’d suggest is the best one to promote that discussion.
dcat
November 30th, 2006 at 5:06 pm
Derek: The discussions have already been had (although younger Americans have not necessarily heard them), and the path has been chosen.
November 30th, 2006 at 6:10 pm
Frank –
I’m a civil rights historian, so I’m aware of these discussions, but to proclaim that they are a settled issue is to overstate. The state of affirmative action in law and in practice is very much in flux.
dcat
December 3rd, 2006 at 1:26 pm
How many RW ers are even left in New England at this point, let alone at an institution that supports liberal critical thinking, like Williams College? The sad fact is, the Republican agenda of small gov and localized control (federalism) has been hijacked by big gov, religious right pandering partisans who promote wedge issues and abrasive rhetoric to advance power. Meanwhile, the Democrats have expanded their base to include progressives like James Webb and John Tester.
Maybe if you believe Teri Schiavo can still be saved, then you can believe that you are going to find enough conservatives who can get into Williams College to form some kind of a group. The fact is, being a Republican is embarrassing to anyone with half a brain at this point. Just ask Lincoln Chaffee. If you think critically, then you must oppose the Republican party.
Now, I know the left can be obnoxious and politically correct to the point of opression, but these players are not in charge of the Democratic party. They may mean somehting at Williams, and progressive Democrats may seem like “conservatives” at Williams, but when you look at the state of both political parties and what they stand for, when you look beyond Williams, who in their right mind would support the embarrassing incompetence, constitutionally dangerious, and stratigically disasterious policies of the “Conservative” party?
December 4th, 2006 at 12:44 pm
Was that that Bizarro Bush writing the previous post?
Compare “strategery” and “misunderestimated” with “dangerious” and “disasterious”.
Substantively, crediting Chafee with even half a brain is being generous; he was largely a senator due to his father having been one, much like Former Senator and VP ManBearPig and Evan Bayh.
While I agree that the Republican agenda has been highjacked by big government conservatives, like Bush and Santorum, the solution isn’t big government moderate republicans like Chafee (who, as you will note, lost) nor big government Democrats. See Ryan Sager’s “The Elephant in the Room” if you are actually interested in this issue.
Furthermore, Jim Webb is not a “progressive”, even insofar as that term retains any real meaning rather than somethings leftists like to use as a compliment; Webb is much more of a traditional populist — just witness his comments about Tailhook, his economically ignorant protectionist rantings, his reference to military service as a “Scotch-Irish Bar Mitzvah”, and his vigorous pro-defense and pro-war on terror attitudes.
I know little about Jon Tester, but my friends in Montana have said that he is more conservative than the establishment-minded Burns on many issues, despite his leftist rhetoric for fundraising purposes.
As to the state of students on campus, there are plenty of intelligent right-of-center students at Williams. While I doubt that many are Big Government Conservatives among college-age students, there are certainly enough students on campus to have at least one if not more active right-of-center group between the libertarians, traditionalist conservatives, and religious conservatives.