WSU SGA blocks formation of WSU chapter of nationwide libertarian student group

[RoyalShock]

Update!

Daniel Burnett @Burnett18

Wichita State overturned YAL decision. FIRE will have a PR out following our letter to the univ pres.

[Kel Varnsen]

https://www.thefire.org/victory-wichita-state-student-court-recognizes-libertarian-group-reverses-student-government-discrimination/

[Kel Varnsen]

http://thesunflower.com/17136/news/emotions-still-high-in-sga-as-supreme-court-overturns-decision-recognizing-yal/

The Wichita State Student Supreme Court overturned a controversial student government decision on Wednesday not to recognize a WSU chapter of the Young Americans for Liberty — or YAL — student group.

Vice President for Student Affairs Teri Hall filed the complaint with the Supreme Court.

“By not passing that resolution, you violated everything you’re supposed to stand for as Student Government,” Hall said at SGA’s Senate meeting. “You talk about not discriminating, and you discriminated against them.”

A number of senators continued to raise concerns with other chapters of the national organization’s willingness to host speakers they believe promote hate speech.

“If there’s a speaker who is ‘alt-right’ and they start talking about white supremacy or are queerphobic or transphobic, what are our rights there and how do we prevent that from happening?” Sen. Debbie Ojeda asked.

Hall noted difficulties with prosecuting hate speech, and cited freedom of speech as a vital part of the academic process.


“There are speakers that we bring to campus all the time that other folks may not want us to bring,” Hall said. “It may not be as controversial as what you’re talking about, but universities are built on freedom of expression and freedom of speech.

Hall said she understands the actions of students on other campuses might make WSU students feel “unsafe about this group,” but asked whether it was fair to judge the group on the actions of others.

“I’m not judging,” Ojeda interjected. “As a queer woman of color, I’m afraid.”

Ojeda continued to cite her concerns relating hate speech to WSU’s new concealed carry policy going into effect in July.

Sen. Paul Raymond took it upon himself to get acquainted with the group and their goals by attending a meeting with their members earlier this week. “Not to mitigate the concerns about discrimination against the LGBTQ community, but two of the six members of the group are part of that community and hopefully their intentions are not to undermine their own identities for the sake of an agenda,” Raymond said.

Ojeda was still not convinced that the group’s motives were pure, citing Milo Yiannopoulos, a gay male speaker often associated with the “alt-right” who has been invited to college campuses across the country by multiple chapters of YAL on his “Dangerous ****** Tour.”

“I don’t think that a member’s sexual orientation is a predictor of whether or not this group stands for hate,” Ojeda said.

According to Raymond, the organization’s first goal is completely unrelated to social commentary.

“The first thing they want to do is set up a table at the RSC to educate students about the United States tax code,” Raymond said.

Re: the bolded portion...she has every right to ignore someone who is voicing an opinion you disagree with. No one is forcing her to listen to them.

Also, identity politics is ruining people's ability to think for themselves. Some of these petulant children need to grow up.

[RoyalShock]

Maybe YAL can educate the student body on their right to ignore speech and opinions which they don't agree with, not suppress them.

Perhaps some members will be motivated to run against the fascistic SGA snowflakes.

[wu_shizzle]

I say this with all care and concern, if you literally are afraid and feel unsafe towards those who think different from you, you need to get help.

Having a position of authority more than likely is fueling your anxiety and is contributing to your problems.

I know that screaming at others may feel like a coping mechanism, but you are only sharing your misery.

[Walker]

This is great news for YAL and any sane student no matter what ideology they align with. There is nothing controversial about YAL and the promotion of Liberty. The elements within the SGA that did this are nothing more than bullies. Kudos to the student Supreme Court for overturning this. It was pretty obvious it was unconstitutional and with the precedent set in Healy v. James, I don't know how they could argue otherwise.

The SJW types that denied YAL probably did it in the name of diversity and inclusion, but when it comes to inclusion and diversity of thought and ideas, they want no part of it.

[RoyalShock]

“There seems to be a shift in campus culture,” said Church. “While the student politicians who voted against this are standing their ground, we’ve had people from all political persuasions reach out to us offering support. We are encouraged by this small win, but there is still work to be done. At Young Americans for Liberty, we are committed to fighting for the First Amendment on campuses across the country.”

That part is somewhat encouraging.

[wufan]

I really enjoy listening to opposing view points and having honest discourse about it. I feel bad for those that can't handle that situation as they are truly missing something. If it ever gets to a discussion where someone is overtly offensive (KKK for example) and out of touch, I do ignore the conversation and politely excuse myself. I don't understand why this is not the societal norm.

[Kel Varnsen]

http://thesunflower.com/17221/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/letter-to-the-editor-debbie-ojeda-on-the-yal-decision/

Last Wednesday night was the fourth time this semester I came home to my family with tears in my eyes. I have been lucky to have my spouse as a strong foundation, but I wonder what other students in Student Government Association do afterwards to deal with the anxiety. In my 29 years, this has been the hardest sense of minority stress I have ever experienced. I cannot imagine how it may feel for other students who are significantly younger than me. We forget that Student Government Association is an organization run by students. These students are very bright but still have a lot to learn and even in my age, I still have a lot to learn. We also forget why people run for student government. I will like to believe most do to get their constituents’ voices heard. That’s why I joined. I saw problems happening on my campus and wanted to use the skills I learned from my degree to help the community I care deeply about. Most importantly, I want to mentor students who barely have a voice not only on campus but in society, as well.

That is why I am concerned because I’ve noticed a trend in how we react, how we speak to each other and how this institution is impacted because of it. It is no secret that the current political climate has a negative influence on society and this campus. It has made many students less empathetic towards other students. I know people say that Joseph and Taben caused a divide on campus- that is frankly not true. No one person has the capability to do so and human behavior is far more complicated than that. As a social scientist myself, I know it goes beyond this campus. Is in our ideologies, the assumptions, and the stereotypes we have for each other. The divide happened because people are becoming more confident and comfortable in hating marginalized students on campus.

Which is why I want to write about Young Americans for Liberty (YAL). I have been very much outspoken about these national organizations even way before I knew there was a chapter starting on campus. I am a strong advocate for freedom of speech if it does not perpetuate violence against those who are often oppressed. Regardless of the laws that is in place, I know that language has a significant and strong hold on power and politics. When I voted no to recognize this organization, I did not vote no because of the students. I am also concerned for these students. This organization may disadvantage these students from getting to know other students from different backgrounds which has proven to be an asset for academia and innovation. It is not a judgement on the students who want to become an RSO, it is a judgement I have with the national organization. This organization will hurt these students whether they agree with me or not.

In addition, I voted no against the national organization because I have seen videos and read articles on how much it has negatively impacted universities. YAL uses freedom of speech similar to other hate groups like the Klu Klux Klan, Neo Nazis, and the Westboro Church. They use freedom of speech as a tool to condone violent language toward minority groups. Similar organizations like YAL have used these concepts to try and dismantle safe spaces, claiming that these are not “intellectual” spaces. Safe spaces are intellectual spaces because it fosters conversations especially about gender, race, sex, politics, and intersectionality. I am concerned for students of color, trans students, student veterans, students with disabilities, queer students and students who have been marginalized; and I am concerned for the spaces on this campus that makes them feel safe at home and help them to be academically successful.

When we accept this hateful rhetoric and normalize it, what would become of this campus? How would students feel safe knowing that this institution has recognized and therefore normalize bigotry and hate speech? How can any student, including myself, feel safe on this campus?

That is why I am disappointed and respectfully disagree with Dr. Teri Hall’s choice to override the decision. To go behind SGA’s back without communicating with us feels disempowering to say the least. I believe it is the responsibility of the Association adviser to create learning moments like our previous adviser, Christine Schneikart-Luebbe. Christine would’ve wanted open conversations with the senate members instead of shaming members during public forum. As an educator myself, there must be room to foster conversations with students even when I believe they made the wrong decision. Moreover, I felt that she completely dismissed my valid fears by accusing me of being judgmental. To compare this situation to having a Muslim Student Association (MSA) also adds a layer of racial injustice. Those who are vehemently against MSA because of “its ties with a terrorist organization” are being racist and Islamophobic- it is different from my opposition of YAL. I am not against white people, I am not against cisgender men, and although I disagree with much of the conservative and libertarian ideals, I am not against having student organizations with these ideologies. I am strictly against an organization that manipulates students to feel like hate speech is not violent and perpetuates a culture that would strictly exclude many marginalized students. I am confused as to why Dr. Hall had the audacity to compare both situations as if they were similar. They are vastly different.

Quite honestly, it was the first time I have felt so blatantly disrespected. It’s been difficult to feel that the relationship the 59 th session has with Dr. Teri Hall has been academic and respectful. It has me worried about the direction of which this university, this state and this nation is heading to. My anxiety makes me feel that this will not end well and many students will be negatively impacted. Argentine-Chilean- American academic and human rights activist, Ariel Dorfman said it best when it comes to language: “You want to free the world, free humanity, from oppression? Look inside, look sideways, look at the hidden violence of language. Never forget that language is where the other, parallel violence, the cruelty exercised on the body, originates.”


Nevertheless, although this session has one more senate meeting to go, it is important to know that we will still be here and we will be watching. What makes marginalized students so resilient is that we look out for each other.

Believe me, our voices will be heard.
—Debbie Ojeda

Glad some people in the comments relayed the exact thoughts I had. And when someone uses the terms "cisgender men" and "intersectionality," I immediately know that nothing they have to say is of value.

[WuDrWu]

Is "cisgender" the 2017 word for "normal"?

Asking for a Klan friend of mine.








WuDrWu
Grand Wizard of the Shockernet Klanton

[Dave Stalwart]

Wait...I just looked it up. So cisgender literally means someone who stays what their birth gender is. Like, as in, we invented a word for the 99.9 percent of people who identify as the actual scientific gender they are? I'm getting confused just thinking about it. Do I have this wrong?

[Kel Varnsen]

Wait...I just looked it up. So cisgender literally means someone who stays what their birth gender is. Like, as in, we invented a word for the 99.9 percent of people who identify as the actual scientific gender they are? I'm getting confused just thinking about it. Do I have this wrong?

You are correct. People have lost their effing minds.

[Walker]

If I had dollar for every gender that existed, I'd have...$2.00.

[SHOCKvalue]

http://thesunflower.com/17221/opinio...-yal-decision/



Glad some people in the comments relayed the exact thoughts I had. And when someone uses the terms "cisgender men" and "intersectionality," I immediately know that nothing they have to say is of value.

Dang... that's a lot of words to more or less say "here's why I am closed-minded and intolerant".

Also love the comparisons to the KKK, the Nazis, and Westboro. That's pretty much like tapping out when it comes to arguing your position. Like saying "I give up with this critical thinking stuff, so I'm going to call you names instead".

Interesting that she finds herself to be a victim in this whole brouhaha. My goodness... talk about navel gazing. Victim mentality gonna victim mentality.

[WuDrWu]

Wait...I just looked it up. So cisgender literally means someone who stays what their birth gender is. Like, as in, we invented a word for the 99.9 percent of people who identify as the actual scientific gender they are? I'm getting confused just thinking about it. Do I have this wrong?

Also, am I the only one that thinks there's a negative connotation associated with the word?

A Neo-Nazi, a cisgender and Fred Phelps walked into a bar.........I beg YOUR pardon, I was talking to the duck.