Attack of the Knuckle-Head Mutli-Culties!

Attack of the Knuckle-Head Mutli-Culties!


I couldn’t help but take a moment out of the weekend to lament this story: celebrated Latino writer, Richard Rodriguez was pressured into canceling  his commencement address at Cal State East Bay scheduled for today after threats from graduating students that they would boycott or protest his appearance.


Rodriguez, a gay essayist, certainly fits smoothly into the traditional of liberalish public intellectuals. His opinion essays and video essays that have been featured on PBS are always thoughtful, provocative, and are laced with deep-felt compassion.


Rodriguez’ crime, however, is that he’s not acceptably PC. He has written in opposition to bi-lingual education and has questioned the rationale for university affirmative action programs. He does this neither as a zealot, nor as political activist, but rather as an intellectual who grew up tough, made it to Stanford, and genuinely wants the best for others like him. Maybe he's right. Maybe he's wrong. He's certainly willing to talk about it.


Not good enough, it seems. Students and some faculty criticized his appearance scheduled for today saying that his views somehow violate the mission of CSU East Bay.


"I'm a bilingual educator," said student Leah Perez, 32, who is graduating with a master's degree in urban teacher leadership and protested Rodriguez's presence at the graduation. "He believes in assimilation and rejection of one's cultural identity, and we don't feel that is what we stand for in our program, and we don't want him representing us.”


Representing you? He was going to speak to you Ms. Perez. And at age 32, with a friggin’ masters degree, don’t you think you could handle hearing something you disagree with without tuning to stone?


But it’s not just the students who have gone off the deep end here.

Sarah Gonzales, a professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, said it was unfair to give Rodriguez a platform and captive audience for his views. "We need to teach our students to be able to listen to diverse opinions, but they also need to be able to respond," said Gonzales, who is also a school board member in Hayward. "As a commencement speaker, he gets free air time."

And this intolerant, closed-minded, ultimately authoritarian-minded teacher also sits on a district school board? Pity the students under her purview.  Aggravating this already outlandish insult is that Rodriguez is a long-time friend of this school. One of his more important books was chosen as summer reading last year for freshmen and Rodriguez was the speaker during a recent campus orientation for new students and their families.


Reports from the campus say that when the 5,000 graduates gather for their commencement ceremony today, there’s still going to be an alternative ceremony attended by 28 graduates from the urban teachers leadership program. Presumably they will conduct a ritual exorcism of Rodriguez’ soul, deemed unfit to haunt the environs of their politically pure state college campus.


I was remarking to a fellow baby boomer today how damn lucky we are not to be 19 year college students today.  I mean, how the hell would we turn out? In the 60’s we fought college administrators for the right to free speech and it was no easy slog.


But where does today’s atmosphere leave young critical thinkers? To their right, Young Republicans who march in lockstep with one of the least compassionate, least competent, and least self-critical administrations in recent history. To their left, gaggles of knucklehead multi-cultis, little tyrants who feel empowered to dictate who should and should not be allowed to be heard. It’s a disgrace.


P.S. here is one interview with Rodriguez. And another. Make sure the PC Police don’t catch you reading this dangerous material!