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College Bake Sales Spark Conflict
Associated Press ^ | 12/24/03 | MELANTHIA MITCHELL

Posted on 12/24/2003 11:46:33 AM PST by winner3000

SEATTLE - Campus bake sales by conservatives who oppose affirmative-action are cooking up discord — and complaints about restrictions on free speech.

Organizers charge white students $1 for a cookie, while blacks and other minorities pay 25 to 95 cents. Doughnuts are available for 50 cents to everyone except Asian Americans and whites, who cannot purchase them.

Unfair? So is affirmative action, organizers contend.

"It's a good example of what affirmative action does, judging people based on race," said Jason Chambers, president of the University of Washington College Republicans, which held a sale in October that shut down when some students began attacking the booth.

"People were upset. People did feel offended," said Anthony Rose, president of the UW Black Student Union. "You see something like that, you feel itemized."

In September, Southern Methodist University shut down a similar event by the Young Conservatives of Texas.

Similar bake sales have been held since February at the University of California-Berkeley, the University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, Northwestern University near Chicago, the University of Michigan and Indiana University.

A conservative watchdog group in Philadelphia contends some universities are violating students' constitutional freedoms by restricting the protests.

"They cannot defend in public what they have done to the First Amendment at the University of Washington," said Thor Halvorssen, CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. "There is no question that the administration would never censor a group of students holding a peaceful protest in favor of affirmative action."

The UW College Republicans' Oct. 8 bake sale took place about the same time as a step performance by a traditionally black fraternity and drew plenty of attention.

Chambers said students engaged in a couple hours of good, heated discussion, until some began yelling and tearing down signs, even throwing cookies at members of the conservative group.

"I really thought that everyone on campus could maintain their composure and have a civil discussion without getting violent. I was really surprised that it went that far," Chambers said.

UW spokesman Robert Roseth said the administration had nothing to do with the shutdown. The group's members dismantled the booth voluntarily after the office of student affairs asked them if they wished to take it down, he said.

Rose, a 20-year-old junior majoring in American Ethnic Studies, backs up the university's account.

"It was for their own safety," Rose said. "They shut themselves down."

In a letter responding to the melee, Board of Regents President Jerry Grinstein expressed disappointment with the sale.

"The statements of the UW College Republicans in putting on a bake sale about affirmative action were tasteless, divisive and hurtful to many members of the university community," he wrote.

In the incident at Southern Methodist University, organizers described the event as a bake sale — not an anti-affirmative-action protest — in their application for event space, said Jim Caswell, vice president for student affairs.

Had the university known it was a demonstration, a more appropriate location would have been chosen, Caswell said. A staff member thought the friction was likely to escalate, and stopped the event, he said.

"I think it's important to note that freedom of expression was not the issue, it was the hostile environment created by the Young Conservatives' failure to fully disclose their intentions," Caswell said.


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; News/Current Events; US: Washington
KEYWORDS: academia; affirmativeaction; bakesale; diversity; freespeach; multiculturalism; pc; uw
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If every time someone is offended, you can be sure no speach will be allowed soon.

"The statements of the UW College Republicans in putting on a bake sale about affirmative action were tasteless, divisive and hurtful to many members of the university community," he wrote.

You know you can't count on liberal administrators like that to be defenders of free speach! I also noticed in the article how legitimate argument and discourse turned into violence by the same people who can be counted to march in peace and anti-war demonstrations. Funny how they change when they feel they're losing an argument!

"Had the university known it was a demonstration, a more appropriate location would have been chosen" - Yeah, a broom closet, or off-off-off-way-off-campus!

Kudos for the brave campus conservatives: rebels with Dr. Martin Luther King's cause!

1 posted on 12/24/2003 11:46:33 AM PST by winner3000
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To: winner3000
Excellent way to deliver a message !
2 posted on 12/24/2003 11:49:14 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach (Davis is now out of Arnoold's Office , Bout Time!!!!)
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To: winner3000
"The statements of the UW College Republicans in putting on a bake sale about affirmative action were tasteless, divisive and hurtful to many members of the university community," he wrote.

Uhhhhhhh.....but Affirmative Action itself is not tasteless, divisive and hurtful?

3 posted on 12/24/2003 11:51:05 AM PST by Texas Eagle
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To: winner3000
In a letter responding to the melee, Board of Regents President Jerry Grinstein expressed disappointment with the sale.

Sounds like someone has Mad Lib disease.

4 posted on 12/24/2003 11:53:18 AM PST by Texas Eagle
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To: winner3000
The title really should read "Affirmative Action Sparks Conflict"
5 posted on 12/24/2003 11:53:22 AM PST by Husker24
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To: winner3000
notice how the spokesperson at SMU blames the conservatives for creating a "hostile environment". this is a liberal code word that means the conservatives "harassed the minority students (even though it was the other way around in reality).
by turning it into a "hostile environment" case, the admin can actually turn the conservatives into the villains.
these conservatives should be supported.
6 posted on 12/24/2003 11:53:23 AM PST by drhogan
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To: winner3000
Chack out http://www.thefire.org which is worthy of our support.
7 posted on 12/24/2003 11:54:54 AM PST by RJCogburn ("Everything happens to me. Now I'm shot by a child."...Tom Chaney after being shot by Mattie Ross)
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To: winner3000
"The statements of the UW College Republicans in putting on a bake sale about affirmative action were tasteless, divisive and hurtful to many members of the university community," he wrote.

This is one of the most smarmy and ridiculous things I've read from a college Administrator. I hope his comments come back to haunt him.

8 posted on 12/24/2003 11:55:47 AM PST by 68skylark
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To: winner3000
Is this a repeat of those other cases I've read about, or are there more and more of these popping up?
9 posted on 12/24/2003 11:56:09 AM PST by RandallFlagg ("There are worse things than crucifixion...There are teeth.")
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
As a graduate of Northwestern University (MBA '85), I am glad to see it as one of the participants. When I was there, I saw it as one of the most PC universities in the country!
10 posted on 12/24/2003 11:58:14 AM PST by Cowboy Bob
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To: winner3000
Chambers said students engaged in a couple hours of good, heated discussion, until some began "I really thought that everyone on campus could maintain their composure and have a civil discussion without getting violent. I was really surprised that it went that far," Chambers said. UW spokesman Robert Roseth said the administration had nothing to do with the shutdown. Rose, a 20-year-old junior majoring in American Ethnic Studies, backs up the university's account. "It was for their own safety," Rose said. "They shut themselves down."

Orwellian doublethink in its puriest form. It is the administration's responsibility to maintain public safety and not to allow liberal thugs from attacking Republican free speech.

The proof that this true? Imagine if an leftist MOVE-ON or democrat party booth were attacked by pro-Americans yelling and tearing down signs, even throwing things at members of the anti-American traitor group. The pro-Americans would have been detained by campus police, arrested, and expelled from school.

And what on earth is "American Ethnic Studies"?

11 posted on 12/24/2003 11:59:32 AM PST by FormerACLUmember (A person is only as big as the dream they dare to live.)
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To: winner3000
"You see something like that, you feel itemized."

Well that's a different way of saying it... I hope his grasp of race relations is better than his grasp of standard usage.
12 posted on 12/24/2003 12:00:56 PM PST by Felis_irritable
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To: FormerACLUmember
And what on earth is "American Ethnic Studies"?

It's Liberalspeak for Leftist Indoctrination.

13 posted on 12/24/2003 12:02:46 PM PST by Texas Eagle
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To: winner3000
Tasteless..., only if you were segerated and disallowed to purchase:) Good on them thar Youngen's Republican's for making $senSe out of Affirmative in-action.
14 posted on 12/24/2003 12:07:16 PM PST by Jumper
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To: Texas Eagle
"American Ethnic Studies": Liberalspeak for Leftist Indoctrination.

These are invariably the most incoherent vomit-inducing courses imaginable. The professors for these gems are hirsute women and men 60's rejects who smell bad, dress in shabby tweeds or pseudo-African costume, and bad mouth Bush and the Repubicans each and every class.

15 posted on 12/24/2003 12:09:08 PM PST by FormerACLUmember (A person is only as big as the dream they dare to live.)
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To: FormerACLUmember
These are invariably the most incoherent vomit-inducing courses imaginable. The professors for these gems are hirsute women and men 60's rejects who smell bad, dress in shabby tweeds or pseudo-African costume, and bad mouth Bush and the Repubicans each and every class.

Wow. I've never spent one minute on a college campus and somehow that is exactly how I pictured just such a class.

16 posted on 12/24/2003 12:12:39 PM PST by Texas Eagle
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To: Texas Eagle
It is time to fumigate the foul odor coming from our nation's universities!
17 posted on 12/24/2003 12:16:16 PM PST by FormerACLUmember (A person is only as big as the dream they dare to live.)
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To: FormerACLUmember
Amen!
18 posted on 12/24/2003 12:19:09 PM PST by Texas Eagle
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To: Texas Eagle
I wonder if Tim Robbins will give his "chill wind" speech about this? Maybe next time a liberal opens his trap, we should beat the living crap out of him for "creating a hostile environment". Apparently it's an accepted form of expression by liberals.
19 posted on 12/24/2003 12:23:34 PM PST by Ron in Acreage
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To: Ron in Acreage
I've got a chill wind for Mr. Sarandon.
20 posted on 12/24/2003 12:29:20 PM PST by Texas Eagle
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