Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Literature Review #4

The scholarly article "Free Speech and Double Standards" by Stuart Taylor that was published int he National Journal may be the best piece I have come across in my research thus far. The piece, which examines the inconsistency in speech-related concerns a colleges and universities. The main example of this "double standard" is Columbia University's president Lee Bollinger's oddly gracious welcoming of the "Holocaust-denying, terrorism sponsoring, nuke-seeking, wipe-Israel-off-the-map-threatening, we-got-no-gay-in-Iran-spouting" previous Iranian president Ahmadinejad. There is not an issue with the university's acceptance of the Iranian official per-say, but as Taylor notes what is unacceptable is the administration's silence on the rejection of a mere anti-illegal-immigration activist at about the same time. Similarly, the president was supportive of the historical ban of ROTC programs at Columbia due to the military's (at the time) discrimination against openly gay people, yet he claimed to be a champion of open debate when graciously welcoming the bigoted and homophobic Iranian president. This analysis of how freedom of expression can be manipulated on college campuses illustrates how a university -- or even a sole administrator -- can push a political agenda on a whole generation of students.
Taylor, Stuart. "Free Speech and Double Standards." National Journal (2009): 1-3. ProQuest Political Science. Web.

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