« Huckabee Ads | Home | Huckabee wanted to quarantine AIDS patients »
CR revival in PA
By punch bowl | December 8, 2007
At Swarthmore College, a small liberal suburban school located just west of Philadelphia along the Delaware River, the College Republicans are being revived after languishing much the last several years.
Much of why the College Republicans disappeared may be explained by a quote from a student –
There’s this assumption on campus that everyone shares the same liberal perspective. The degree of diversity of opinion is really how liberal you are.
The school newspaper, the Phoenix, in several articles (article 1; article 2) reports on the revival of the College Republicans at Swarhmore.
As one article reports, the chapter at Swarthmore is as strong as its been in 14 years.
The Swarthmore chapter of the College Republicans is in the process of being revived this year in an attempt to broaden the spectrum of political perspectives represented on campus. So far, the College Republicans have had two meetings, a YouTube Debate watching party, as well as an informational meeting in early December. The turnout at the meetings suggests that the College Republicans may be experiencing their biggest comeback in 14 years, after formal meetings stopped being held last year.
Wihtout a College Republican group for 14 years, the last time there was a “true” CR club at Swartmore, Newt Gingrinch was being sworn in as Speaker of the House. One article points out that a person affiliated with the college remembered that –
…the College Republicans were very active in the 1993-94 academic year, with five or six energetic students organizing events and a speaker series featuring big-name conservative figures.
The leaders of the movement are Justin Shaffer and David Pupkin; and as one member suggests, their leadership seems to be appreciated.
It’s nice to have a place where you’re not constantly being attacked for your opinions and [not] always having to be on the defensive for your political views. When you do introduce any conservative point of view, it’s almost immediately refuted because people don’t take it under consideration.
But while some are appreciative, others are not.
If the defiling of College Republican posters is any indication, the new club may face some opposition from the student body. [A student] said that a poster in the basement of her dorm had been defaced within a brief period of time. While defiling had been done with a humorous slant [a student] pointed out that had it would mostly likely not have happened for the poster of another political group.
Some at Swarthmore hope that the comeback of the College Republicans will contribute to a more balanced political scene at Swarthmore. I share the same hope and wish the Swarthmore College Republicans the very best of luck in their journey.
Topics: Uncategorized, CR gossip |
