This blog post will be slightly different from my other ones I've posted. It will consist of two separate articles I have written that ultimately build upon one another. I wrote this first piece as a result of conservative suppression on college campuses. This is arguably my most passionate political issue that I've been tackling ever since stepping foot on my campus. That being said, this article generated tremendous buzz around campus - good and bad. As a result, I had a professor of mine insinuate that I was a Nazi due to my political beliefs. I wrote another article combating that incredibly inappropriate comment to show further proof of the suppression the Left laughs at me for.
I hope you enjoy.
Denison’s dystopia of political suppression
A common theme among the College Republicans across the United States is that of suppression. Viewpoints that don’t align with left-leaning rhetoric are often shunned, put down, or suppressed.
Many who disagree with the Right tend to ridicule this sentiment, especially on Denison’s own campus. I get a platform to write about conservatism, so how can Republicans be suppressed? The writings I publish are an anomaly in a time of societal decline in productive and engaging thought and discussion. I argue that bias has infiltrated not only Denison’s campus but our society as a whole.
Denison is a microcosm of what the United States is like today. Students on campus have continuously been silenced or scared into suppression for their personal politics. They’re made to seem that because they vote Republican, they are for whatever reason immoral compared to liberal viewpoints.
Through talking with students in Residential Communities, I learned that the class of 2022 lost numerous students to transfers as a result of their fear of being a conservative on this campus. Professors in class refuse to write the President’s name on their board during lectures or even canceled class after the 2016 election. Some student groups constantly post on their social media pages or create posters with clear anti-Republican biases, and campus news publications who prefer social justice advocacy over reporting the news are just small, yet very real examples of the systematic suppression of an opposing viewpoint.
I published an article over the summer explaining why I was pro-life. I was bombarded with comments and individuals reaching out with hate-filled remarks. Multiple comments were deleted off of the Denisonian’s Facebook page due to threats against me. Conservative students have had their rooms broken into, with threatening notes placed in their private quarters, and in my case my room was broken into and my posters were torn up and thrown onto my floor.
I am the President of the Denison College Republicans. With that comes the responsibility of being a strong advocate for the Republican-affiliated students on campus. It's a sobering job, in that I receive countless emails, messages, and notes from students explaining how they’re scared to be a part of the group or even share who they are with their friends out of fear of what the campus will do to them. Students are so indoctrinated by American millennial society into a narrow-minded way of thinking that it leads to resentment and animosity toward those who disagree. As George Orwell stated, “if liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”
Obviously I don’t want to constantly be hearing about why socialized medicine is the greatest thing ever, or why abortion should be legal, or why amnesty needs to be given to illegal immigrants. However, what separates Republicans from Democrats seems to be the willingness to listen and learn. I step out of my comfort zone and go to other group meetings. I take classes on topics I’m not knowledgeable in. Other Republicans on campus do the same. I keep attendance at DCR meetings and know only a select few left-leaning students who come to learn about an opposing viewpoint and don’t wish to live in an ignorant bubble of their own beliefs.
I’m tired of students coming up to me and talking about how much I’ve grown in my beliefs because my views aren’t as Right-leaning as a reputation precedes me. It assumes I’m wrong in my beliefs and only by adopting the left-leaning majority’s beliefs am I correct or #woke. This is dangerous for deliberation. I’d like to see these same students take as much time to learn about what being a Republican actually is.
I’d like students to stop living in ignorant bubbles of their own self-righteousness and allow Denison to listen to an alternative perspective which can truly allow us to become discerning moral agents. Feel free to email me at beach_n1@denison.edu if you’d like to continue this discussion.
As a result of this article, I was called a Nazi by my professor. Here is my response:
The problematic nature of hostile political discourse
A common trope of our internet-controlled society is exploitation of the free platform social media that allows people to say basically whatever they want. Generally-speaking, all people are given a platform to post their thoughts. With that, however, has been an increase in hostile political dialogue. According to The Pew Research Center, 59% of Americans say their social media interactions with those with opposing political views are stressful and frustrating, and 64% say their online encounters with people on the opposite side of the political spectrum leave them feeling as if they have even less in common than they thought. Roughly half of users feel the political conversations they see on social media are angrier (49%), less respectful (53%) and less civil (49%) than those in other areas of life.
These results correlate clearly with the issue I take up in this article; that buzzwords and derogatory social labels are over-used in our society.
I have been doing research on deliberation since my sophomore year of school. Through this research, I’ve seen that there is a significant correlation between the usage of these words and the way they’re communicated. In a hypothetical argument between a Republican and a Democrat on Twitter, there is a generalized time-frame when both sides will start to refer to the other as a Nazi. This ‘Nazi-complex’ is a problem and is part of what exasperates the polarization in society. For example, there was a Denisonian article published a few weeks ago seemingly in response to my own suppression article. In it, it not only attributed the C3 poster rippings with that of “right-wing partisans” but that fascism is not just a tenet of the Republican Party, but of the student group on campus. Now using these terms doesn’t accomplish anything. There has never been any evidence the C3 rippings were a political statement or from Republicans.
Both sides of the political aisle constantly referring to one another as any of the many ‘isms only creates division. Democratic candidates for President keep calling one another racist or sexist for their policies, Republicans can’t even sit in class without being accused of having oppressive views.
The over-use of these words is problematic. If both sides of the aisle constantly rely on these ‘isms to win arguments, it will dilute the meaning of these words. Constantly calling Republicans Nazis ultimately takes power away from the actual historical event in which it comes from. This is disrespectful to the millions of murdered outcasts that were fatally affected by the Nazi party’s ideology. Just relying on emotionally powerful terms dilutes their power and divides people just as much as burning the flag.
This article’s intention is not to come off as a whiny rant about how Republicans are called names.This is a universal issue in politics. Republicans are just as guilty as Democrats at this sort of name-calling. All one has to do is look at the President’s Twitter page to see how Republicans are guilty as well. This is an issue both sides are guilty of and that both sides need to fix. When true oppressive opinions are expressed - some of which the President has been rightly called out on - then these words should be used when specific views are inherently oppressive.
These words are important and need to be used. However, they have become too ingrained in our political dialogue which has led to a political affiliation with morality. Being a Republican does not make anyone any more moral than being a Democrat does. Looking at Washington, the media does a terrible job of showing the commonality between the views. Many politicians in the government disagree over policy but are actually close friends. The Ohio coalition in Congress is all incredibly close, even though the diversity of ideologies span from Freedom Caucus founder Jim Jordan to far-left populist Joyce Beatty. This is important to notice, as though they disagree on the Floor of the House when they debate and vote, they still respect one another as humans and colleagues.
Respect that person for who they are - another person with equally valid views. Hate and tear apart the opinion, but shy away from overusing trigger-words and insults that attack the moral integrity and character of the person arguing the opposing side. Together, this will create a more respectful, collaborative, happier and less polarized America.
Together these essays highlight the struggles Republicans face day in and day out. I write from my own experiences, but this occurs everywhere. A whopping 73% of Republicans in college keep their views hidden out of fear of backlash. This is heinous. Colleges nowadays are charging students hundreds of thousands of dollars and directly affecting our lives for professors to judge us on how well we agree with their beliefs. This is sick. American academics and the institutions that house them need to wake up, because Republicans are angry. Suppression is nothing new for the Right, as this has become the new norm for us. For an ideology that claims to be accepting and progressive, the Left is becoming nothing more than a mob boss hacking away his competition. The fight for the First Amendment and our ability to speak out is just beginning. This is a fight Republicans must win. This is a fight we will win. Thank you for reading and God Bless America.
I hope you enjoy.
Denison’s dystopia of political suppression
A common theme among the College Republicans across the United States is that of suppression. Viewpoints that don’t align with left-leaning rhetoric are often shunned, put down, or suppressed.
Many who disagree with the Right tend to ridicule this sentiment, especially on Denison’s own campus. I get a platform to write about conservatism, so how can Republicans be suppressed? The writings I publish are an anomaly in a time of societal decline in productive and engaging thought and discussion. I argue that bias has infiltrated not only Denison’s campus but our society as a whole.
Denison is a microcosm of what the United States is like today. Students on campus have continuously been silenced or scared into suppression for their personal politics. They’re made to seem that because they vote Republican, they are for whatever reason immoral compared to liberal viewpoints.
Through talking with students in Residential Communities, I learned that the class of 2022 lost numerous students to transfers as a result of their fear of being a conservative on this campus. Professors in class refuse to write the President’s name on their board during lectures or even canceled class after the 2016 election. Some student groups constantly post on their social media pages or create posters with clear anti-Republican biases, and campus news publications who prefer social justice advocacy over reporting the news are just small, yet very real examples of the systematic suppression of an opposing viewpoint.
I published an article over the summer explaining why I was pro-life. I was bombarded with comments and individuals reaching out with hate-filled remarks. Multiple comments were deleted off of the Denisonian’s Facebook page due to threats against me. Conservative students have had their rooms broken into, with threatening notes placed in their private quarters, and in my case my room was broken into and my posters were torn up and thrown onto my floor.
I am the President of the Denison College Republicans. With that comes the responsibility of being a strong advocate for the Republican-affiliated students on campus. It's a sobering job, in that I receive countless emails, messages, and notes from students explaining how they’re scared to be a part of the group or even share who they are with their friends out of fear of what the campus will do to them. Students are so indoctrinated by American millennial society into a narrow-minded way of thinking that it leads to resentment and animosity toward those who disagree. As George Orwell stated, “if liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”
Obviously I don’t want to constantly be hearing about why socialized medicine is the greatest thing ever, or why abortion should be legal, or why amnesty needs to be given to illegal immigrants. However, what separates Republicans from Democrats seems to be the willingness to listen and learn. I step out of my comfort zone and go to other group meetings. I take classes on topics I’m not knowledgeable in. Other Republicans on campus do the same. I keep attendance at DCR meetings and know only a select few left-leaning students who come to learn about an opposing viewpoint and don’t wish to live in an ignorant bubble of their own beliefs.
I’m tired of students coming up to me and talking about how much I’ve grown in my beliefs because my views aren’t as Right-leaning as a reputation precedes me. It assumes I’m wrong in my beliefs and only by adopting the left-leaning majority’s beliefs am I correct or #woke. This is dangerous for deliberation. I’d like to see these same students take as much time to learn about what being a Republican actually is.
I’d like students to stop living in ignorant bubbles of their own self-righteousness and allow Denison to listen to an alternative perspective which can truly allow us to become discerning moral agents. Feel free to email me at beach_n1@denison.edu if you’d like to continue this discussion.
As a result of this article, I was called a Nazi by my professor. Here is my response:
The problematic nature of hostile political discourse
A common trope of our internet-controlled society is exploitation of the free platform social media that allows people to say basically whatever they want. Generally-speaking, all people are given a platform to post their thoughts. With that, however, has been an increase in hostile political dialogue. According to The Pew Research Center, 59% of Americans say their social media interactions with those with opposing political views are stressful and frustrating, and 64% say their online encounters with people on the opposite side of the political spectrum leave them feeling as if they have even less in common than they thought. Roughly half of users feel the political conversations they see on social media are angrier (49%), less respectful (53%) and less civil (49%) than those in other areas of life.
These results correlate clearly with the issue I take up in this article; that buzzwords and derogatory social labels are over-used in our society.
I have been doing research on deliberation since my sophomore year of school. Through this research, I’ve seen that there is a significant correlation between the usage of these words and the way they’re communicated. In a hypothetical argument between a Republican and a Democrat on Twitter, there is a generalized time-frame when both sides will start to refer to the other as a Nazi. This ‘Nazi-complex’ is a problem and is part of what exasperates the polarization in society. For example, there was a Denisonian article published a few weeks ago seemingly in response to my own suppression article. In it, it not only attributed the C3 poster rippings with that of “right-wing partisans” but that fascism is not just a tenet of the Republican Party, but of the student group on campus. Now using these terms doesn’t accomplish anything. There has never been any evidence the C3 rippings were a political statement or from Republicans.
Both sides of the political aisle constantly referring to one another as any of the many ‘isms only creates division. Democratic candidates for President keep calling one another racist or sexist for their policies, Republicans can’t even sit in class without being accused of having oppressive views.
The over-use of these words is problematic. If both sides of the aisle constantly rely on these ‘isms to win arguments, it will dilute the meaning of these words. Constantly calling Republicans Nazis ultimately takes power away from the actual historical event in which it comes from. This is disrespectful to the millions of murdered outcasts that were fatally affected by the Nazi party’s ideology. Just relying on emotionally powerful terms dilutes their power and divides people just as much as burning the flag.
This article’s intention is not to come off as a whiny rant about how Republicans are called names.This is a universal issue in politics. Republicans are just as guilty as Democrats at this sort of name-calling. All one has to do is look at the President’s Twitter page to see how Republicans are guilty as well. This is an issue both sides are guilty of and that both sides need to fix. When true oppressive opinions are expressed - some of which the President has been rightly called out on - then these words should be used when specific views are inherently oppressive.
These words are important and need to be used. However, they have become too ingrained in our political dialogue which has led to a political affiliation with morality. Being a Republican does not make anyone any more moral than being a Democrat does. Looking at Washington, the media does a terrible job of showing the commonality between the views. Many politicians in the government disagree over policy but are actually close friends. The Ohio coalition in Congress is all incredibly close, even though the diversity of ideologies span from Freedom Caucus founder Jim Jordan to far-left populist Joyce Beatty. This is important to notice, as though they disagree on the Floor of the House when they debate and vote, they still respect one another as humans and colleagues.
Respect that person for who they are - another person with equally valid views. Hate and tear apart the opinion, but shy away from overusing trigger-words and insults that attack the moral integrity and character of the person arguing the opposing side. Together, this will create a more respectful, collaborative, happier and less polarized America.
Together these essays highlight the struggles Republicans face day in and day out. I write from my own experiences, but this occurs everywhere. A whopping 73% of Republicans in college keep their views hidden out of fear of backlash. This is heinous. Colleges nowadays are charging students hundreds of thousands of dollars and directly affecting our lives for professors to judge us on how well we agree with their beliefs. This is sick. American academics and the institutions that house them need to wake up, because Republicans are angry. Suppression is nothing new for the Right, as this has become the new norm for us. For an ideology that claims to be accepting and progressive, the Left is becoming nothing more than a mob boss hacking away his competition. The fight for the First Amendment and our ability to speak out is just beginning. This is a fight Republicans must win. This is a fight we will win. Thank you for reading and God Bless America.
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