Views On Vassar | Vassar’s liberal environment is stifling the conservative voice

Tendai Musakwa Opinions Editor

The Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines the word “liberal” as “respecting and allowing many different types of beliefs or behavior.” Vassar would confidently describe itself as liberal in this respect as it purportedly “honors diversity of perspective…and also has tolerance and respect for diversity” (admissions.vassar.edu/about_coed. html). However, the experiences of students at the College tell a different story altogether. It seems that the overwhelming majority of socio-political liberals at Vassar is impinging on the right of the minority conservatives to freely express their views and ideologies. The College has become a restrictive environment for conservatives to assert themselves and this has started a debate as to whether Vassar is indeed liberal (by the Cambridge definition) or not.

There is a stigma associated with being conservative at Vassar. This makes it difficult, if not impossible, for those on the right to identify themselves as conservative, let alone voice their opinions. Alex Tanskey ’07, one of the few conservatives at the College who identifies himself as such, said, “I have a conservative freshman friend who identifies himself as moderate because he wants to be able to have friends. In class, I can’t really express an opinion without having 10 people on my throat. For this reason, I don’t really speak up in class.”

The fact that students at Vassar cannot freely share their viewpoints for fear of retribution from their peers is unacceptable, and solutions should be found to solve this deplorable condition.

One might suppose that the situation perhaps stems from the admissions process. Liberal arts colleges are known for having a largely liberal population and Vassar is not an exception. Abby Laufer ’10, who identifies herself as liberal, said, “People who apply to Vassar are liberal because Vassar is well known for being a very liberal campus.”

Similarly, Alison Burke ’10, another liberal, said, “I think Vassar doesn’t attract a lot of conservatives and I don’t really have a problem with that.”

Many of the other respondents questioned shared this unabashedly negative view of conservatives. Nonetheless, the conservative students who were questioned indicated that even though they knew that Vassar was a predominantly liberal college, they were not deterred because they were attracted by Vassar’s other qualities, especially the high quality of education that the College offers. As the College still attracts conservative students, it is in its best interest to promote self-expression and acceptance of conservative students and faculty. This will encourage more conservative students to apply, thus diversifying the College and enriching the college experience for all students.

While most acknowledge that there is a problem with conservative freedom of expression, students at Vassar generally take an apathetic stance towards the problem. Katie Jedrlinic ’09 said, “It’s probably harder for conservatives to be openly conservative and promote their causes. That’s probably annoying for conservatives but they would have to figure out a solution for that themselves…all eight of them.” This phlegmatic treatment of a problem that most students acknowledge is dangerous in that it indicates a grudging tolerance without respect or solidarity. Solidarity of purpose in terms of understanding the differences between us is something we need in a college setting as we prepare to be the future leaders of a peaceful world.

Vassar needs to establish a commonality of purpose to allow the free expression of the socio-political views and ideologies of all students regardless of where they place themselves on the political spectrum. One of the ways in which this could be done, in light of the fact that the College has a liberal majority, would be to encourage political dialogue by bringing conservative speakers to campus. Hiring more professors who identify themselves as conservative, or encouraging them to appy, and rigidly enforcing the College’s no-discrimination policy by punishing offenders and encouraging victims of political harassment to speak up would also encourage freedom of expression. Vassar is, at present, not a liberated environment for all its students. The College community should make an active effort to accommodate the many political views found in the world outside Vassar within it, in order to make Vassar a truly liberal college.