There’s an open letter to the Daily Bruin being circulated among UCLA faculty about how the faculty is united to defend our students of color, LGTBQ, etc…. And how UCLA is a safe space for them.
There is no mention of the increasingly violent riots–yes, riots. There is no mention of numerous trumped up (pun intended) false claims being made. There is no acknowledgement that not everybody at UCLA voted for Hillary. There is no acknowledgement that such a letter might alienate conservative faculty and students, making the former wonder about whether UCLA is a safe place for them to work and the latter whether it is a safe place to go to school.
Do you think a similar letter would have circulated to reassure our conservative students if Hillary had won? Do you think faculty would be united to offer those students a safe space?
No? Me neither.
“Inclusiveness” only goes in one direction. Like tolerance, they demand it, they don’t offer it.
Related: Freakout at UMass Lowell.
UPDATE: Not all universities are crazy. From a reader:
Here is the text of the letter President Taylor Reveley sent to the students of William and Mary.
Dear William & Mary Community,
In 1800 John Adams and Thomas Jefferson competed for the presidency in a very close and savage campaign. The contending political parties were convinced that the success of the other would destroy our fledgling Republic. But the Republic has proved remarkably resilient. I have great personal confidence in the future of the United States and in its capacity to keep growing as an open and welcoming society.
There is no doubt that the recent campaign was enormously divisive and dispiriting. Emotions on our campus now run high, ranging from fear and despair at one end of the continuum to excitement and satisfaction at the other. It is important that we talk with one another about what we think and feel, but it is vital that we do so with respect and concern for one another. That is the William & Mary way.
I take heart from the gracious tone and substance with which the two former candidates and President Obama have spoken to us in the wake of the election. The President was particularly eloquent. He captured the core reality when he noted that, when all is said and done, presidential elections are simply intramural competitions, because we are all ultimately on the same team.
Students, many of you voted in your first presidential election. Some from our campus campaigned or served at polling stations. It matters that we stay engaged. The civic health of our communities, states and nation requires it. Each of us needs to seek common ground for the common good.
Taylor Reveley
That’s exactly the right response.