Untitled Document http://www.meredith.edu/herald/heraldopinion2.htm
school. Subjects taught in class may offend the prudent sensibilities of some. Yet, we can not be
so insensitive as to discount the views of others. Professors cannot teach only for the benefit of
the majority.
That being said, our professors are older, wiser, and if they had nothing to teach us, they would
not get the job. Our educators have lived longer, seen more presidents, policies, and
environmental changes. They have gone into hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt because
they care enough to teach us a little bit about the way the world works. Yes, I have been
confronted with the world views of my teachers, but this never compromised my principles.
Meredith professors are not in the business of brainwashing and perpetrating agendas. I have
never been told who to vote for in class. I have never heard anyone’s opinion ridiculed by a
teacher. What I have heard in class is sound knowledge and food for thought. We are given the
tools to research our ideas, but to study our ideas is always to research the ideas of others. This is
why we have to write papers from a perspective other than our own. Academia does not
recognize formally our opinions until we are published ourselves. Every piece of knowledge we
obtain, at Meredith College or zmy other institution, is a product of some one else’s views. All we
can hope for is to memorize facts from books unless we listen to the opinions of others. In this
case the others may be more educated and liberal than we are.
My advice to this oppressed conservative majority is SPEAK UP! Don’t be afraid to write from
your perspective! Don’t be afraid to be heard in class! That is the most beautifiil thing about our
Meredith education: that young women find their voice and aren’t afraid to use it. We have a
reputation for being a formidable force in Raleigh! We can’t be afraid to be heard, ladies, but we
also can’t be afraid to be corrected. When you raise your voice, others may attack you. This is the
way the world works. Fight back by knowing more the next time! Do your research, and read the
papers, watch the news, listen to the other side. Those we don’t agree with still have something to
teach us.
Ladies, we have a vibrant, dynamic learning environment at Meredith College. It saddens me to
think that our opinions are so tender that we can not defend ourselves in class. I know for certain
though, that our professors are not so narrow minded as to arbitrarily grade their students based
on personal politics. I believe our professors are ethical, reasonable people who care deeply about
the growth and progress of each individual woman. Meredith College professors are human, and
they are not above reproach. They certainly have their own personal outlook. Writing a
dissertation will definitely shape a person’s judgment on an issue. We cannot expect our
professors to cower before the conservative tide in this country. Restricting academic thought and
censoring professors is prohibited by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United
States of America. For students to assume to know the politics of our professors based on a few
semesters of contact is ridiculous. To assume that our teachers are capricious enough to discount
the views of others is to assert that they are not credible. I have the utmost faith in the faculty that
Meredith College has chosen to hire. I do not believe everything they say, but I do put my trust in
their ability to foment ideas. We cannot hire more conservative professors, because it
unprofessional to inquire about politics in job interviews. Personal politics are not among the
Meredith administration’s criteria for hiring individuals with doctorate degrees.
To insist that our education—that our hard-earned degree that some of us will pay on for years,
with interest— is a product of a left-wing conspiracy is obscene. Our educators and college
administrators are accused of running a propaganda machine. This is ludicrous. I will graduate
next spring from the finest institution in Raleigh. I am proud of my Meredith education, and my
views have been thoroughly challenged, refined, and sometimes changed here. We must not be
afraid to confi-ont our own belief systems. This called cognitive dissonance, and it is a valuable
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