The vice president celebrated Notre Dame's commitment to free speech at the same time protesters streamed out of his commencement address.
Protesting political commencement speakers—presidents past and present, former or current Cabinet members who wax platitudinous on graduation day—is not a new phenomenon. SoVice President Mike Pence knew what he was walking into at Notre Dame last weekend. He came prepared. And while he condemned the censorious habits of mind endemic to campuses these days, students and families filed silently out of their own graduation ceremony.
About 150 up and left, according to the South Bend Tribune, missing the vice president's praise of the Fighting Irish for their commitment to free speech and liberal-democratic dissent. "While this institution has maintained an atmosphere of civility and open debate," he said, "far too many campuses across America have become characterized by speech codes, safe zones, tone policing, administration-sanctioned political correctness—all of which amounts to nothing less than suppression of the freedom of speech."
Students at the nation's top Catholic university spent weeks planning their Pence protest. The protest, led by the group We StaND For, was not just predictable but preplanned: activists mapped out the venue and their route online ahead of time. Women's March organizers and representatives from GLAAD—formerly the gay and lesbian alliance against defamation; now, to ward off the appearance of trans-exclusion, "GLAAD" stands for nothing—stepped up to support the scheduled walkout. Alumni signed on by the thousands. Talking Points Memo published passages from the protesters' manifesto:
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4 comments:
How embarrassing. Such disrespect from students who were fortunate enough to receive an education from such an esteemed institution. This is the quality of young people about to enter our work force? These kids need some deep introspection and should be setting an example. Not cool.
Ignorance is bliss. But no more safe zones in the real world you loser snowflakes
The ones that were afraid of the words that they were about to hear and had to run away with hands over their ears will never find the jobs of the caliber of a college graduate.
The ones who stayed seated are the ones employers are looking for.
It's the new "cool thing to do".
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