2019 In Review: The 6 WORST Things Educators Said About Conservative Students
2019 In Review: The 6 WORST Things Educators Said About Conservative Students
By
kara
December 30, 2019
2019 was marked with intolerant professors, administrators, and staff who didn’t hold back in their baseless criticisms of Young Americans for Freedom activists this year. YAF has compiled a list of the worst quotes school officials were caught saying about conservative students this year: 6. Lake Forest High School–Lake Forest, IL “I question whether this group is appropriate for our school and students.” A teacher at a high school just outside of Chicago was determined to put up several roadblocks as a YAF chapter tried to gain recognition from the school. According to internal emails obtained through YAF’s Censorship Exposed project, a teacher inquired whether the YAF chapter was “appropriate” for the school, noting that “to be forthcoming and transparent, a group was formed earlier this year with extreme politics and ideals, mostly dealing with hate, racism, and homophobia, and certainly I am not comfortable with a group like that again.” 5. California State University-Los Angeles, CA “When the actions of a few on our campus lack the compassion and sensitivity that characterize healthy dialogue, it is our collective responsibility to restore those values.” The president of CSULA slammed the school’s YAF chapter for daring to host conservative speaker, Michael Knowles. In an email to students obtained by YAF, Bill Covino claimed that he “cannot remain silent in the face of actions that ostracize our students who are immigrants or children of immigrants,” following a speech by Knowles that encouraged stricter immigration policies. Not surprisingly, this is the man who cancelled Ben Shapiro’s appearance at the school in 2016. 4. College of Lake County– Grayslake, IL “Hate groups are not welcome here.” An advisor at the College of Lake County, a school just outside of Chicago, plastered campus with posters claiming the YAF chapter was a hate group, and telling students that “hate groups are not welcome here.” YAF immediately pushed back on these false accusations, and the school ended up creating free speech training for faculty and staff following the incident. 3. California State University- Los Angeles, CA “…emotionally and physically triggered by last week’s ‘free speech’ attack on our school” According to internal emails obtained through YAF’s Censorship Exposed project, Carlos Tejada, a professor at CSULA claimed he was “emotionally and physically triggered” by the YAF chapter’s immigration activism event. “I nearly had to cancel class because of how shaken I am about seeing a ‘Build the Wall’ banner on our campus,” he wrote. The activism project “poses a threat to the mental well-being of many of our students, staff, and faculty [and] violates their sense of safety on their campus,” he added. It “was not simply an exercise of ‘free speech,’ but an outright attack on the psyches and well-being of more than few students, faculty, and staff.” 2. University of Kentucky- Lexington, KY “Jesus tap dancing Christ” Two staff members in the student organization office at the University of Kentucky intentionally delayed paperwork and recognizing the YAF chapter at the school. According to internal instant messages obtained through YAF’s Censorship Exposed project, Caitlin Walsh and Meghan Jennings noted their concern with national YAF, claiming the organization seems “sticky.” They went on to mock the Sharon Statement, writing “oh jesus tap dancing christ” after quoting a line from the statement, and gleefully noting their delay in approving the club, writing “they are going to be mad they waited forever and I denied them whoops.” The university later apologized to the conservative students, noting that they have “taken steps to ensure that it does not occur again.” 1. Mississippi State University- Starkville, MS “Hoods and burning crosses optional” An instructor at Mississppi State University mocked YAF activists who were holding an immigration activism event on campus, calling the group the “White male student caucus” and stating that “hoods and burning crosses optional.” YAF learned several months after that the instructor, Ryan Phillips, was removed from MSU’s website faculty listing, although the university would not comment on if he was still employed by the school. Intolerance of conservative students is rampant in the higher education system, and Young America’s Foundation is putting these leftists on notice– you will be called out for your discrimination, and you will be held accountable.
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5. California State University-Los Angeles, CA “When the actions of a few on our campus lack the compassion and sensitivity that characterize healthy dialogue, it is our collective responsibility to restore those values.” The president of CSULA slammed the school’s YAF chapter for daring to host conservative speaker, Michael Knowles. In an email to students obtained by YAF, Bill Covino claimed that he “cannot remain silent in the face of actions that ostracize our students who are immigrants or children of immigrants,” following a speech by Knowles that encouraged stricter immigration policies. Not surprisingly, this is the man who cancelled Ben Shapiro’s appearance at the school in 2016. 
4. College of Lake County– Grayslake, IL “Hate groups are not welcome here.” An advisor at the College of Lake County, a school just outside of Chicago, plastered campus with posters claiming the YAF chapter was a hate group, and telling students that “hate groups are not welcome here.” YAF immediately pushed back on these false accusations, and the school ended up creating free speech training for faculty and staff following the incident. 
3. California State University- Los Angeles, CA “…emotionally and physically triggered by last week’s ‘free speech’ attack on our school” According to internal emails obtained through YAF’s Censorship Exposed project, Carlos Tejada, a professor at CSULA claimed he was “emotionally and physically triggered” by the YAF chapter’s immigration activism event. “I nearly had to cancel class because of how shaken I am about seeing a ‘Build the Wall’ banner on our campus,” he wrote. The activism project “poses a threat to the mental well-being of many of our students, staff, and faculty [and] violates their sense of safety on their campus,” he added. It “was not simply an exercise of ‘free speech,’ but an outright attack on the psyches and well-being of more than few students, faculty, and staff.” 
2. University of Kentucky- Lexington, KY “Jesus tap dancing Christ” Two staff members in the student organization office at the University of Kentucky intentionally delayed paperwork and recognizing the YAF chapter at the school. According to internal instant messages obtained through YAF’s Censorship Exposed project, Caitlin Walsh and Meghan Jennings noted their concern with national YAF, claiming the organization seems “sticky.” They went on to mock the Sharon Statement, writing “oh jesus tap dancing christ” after quoting a line from the statement, and gleefully noting their delay in approving the club, writing “they are going to be mad they waited forever and I denied them whoops.” The university later apologized to the conservative students, noting that they have “taken steps to ensure that it does not occur again.” 
1. Mississippi State University- Starkville, MS “Hoods and burning crosses optional” An instructor at Mississppi State University mocked YAF activists who were holding an immigration activism event on campus, calling the group the “White male student caucus” and stating that “hoods and burning crosses optional.” 
YAF learned several months after that the instructor, Ryan Phillips, was removed from MSU’s website faculty listing, although the university would not comment on if he was still employed by the school. Intolerance of conservative students is rampant in the higher education system, and Young America’s Foundation is putting these leftists on notice– you will be called out for your discrimination, and you will be held accountable. 
