In deep sadness I write in response to an unfortunate article written by Sean Lundergan. In his article “It’s OK that conservatives don’t feel welcome,” the reader is provided with the most intolerant and circular of all arguments that I have ever read on a piece of paper. To start, I would like to champion that I do not consider myself particularly liberal nor conservative; rather, I consider myself to hold a range of ideas across the political spectrum.

I think it is important to point out that academic success and discourse is only valuable when we consider all possible arguments in response to a particular question or idea. As such, it is absolutely outrageous to claim that we should not entertain conservative ideas simply because 73 percent of students consider themselves to be liberal. This, contrary to what Lundergan may claim, does not promote discourse at all. Instead, it creates an echo chamber in which the ideas of the majority are bounced to and fro without any possibility of opposition.

Second, it is also important to state that conservatism does not always mean that Republicans support the ideas of the president. For example, in my view and in the view of many conservatives I know, conservatism refers to a system of beliefs that exalts small government and low spending.

Thirdly, I would like to say that many ideals championed by liberals is the acceptance of all people and the equality of all people. It is highly hypocritical to say that conservatives on campus must suck it up and deal with it because people don’t agree, when, in practice, Mr. Lundergan is asking conservatives to not say anything because he does not agree. The founders of our country pushed for the freedom for factions to exist and be respected in our society. We see this in the Constitution, in the Federalist Papers (IX and X) and in inaugural addresses by many of the first presidents.

In an academic setting it is our duty to challenge our minds and our beliefs in order to progress in our understanding. This simply is not possible under the model proposed by Mr. Lundergan. I am offended by the blatant stereotypes and ideas proposed in his article. He proposes no evidence to support them. I am not saying that I support the bigotry and sexism of our current administration. I am saying, however, that rejection and oppression of ideas that are not similar to yours is not a solution to the problem. All liberals would agree that oppression and censorship is wrong and not productive to progression and academia. However, is it not evident that by saying conservatives have no place to hold their beliefs and state their opinions that, in fact, we are censoring conservatives? In my opinion it is more important to respect and entertain all viewpoints in order to deepen our understanding, and personally I am appalled that a university newspaper dared to run an article that demands such academic censorship and singularity.

As students and researchers, it is our duty to challenge what we think and strive to prove what we think as wrong or right and to provide concrete evidence for that. Have we forgotten this? I know that tensions are high in our current political climate and rejection of ideas is two sided. It is exactly because of this that I say we should not stoop to the same level as those politicians we criticize for refusing to cooperate. As a human race we have always been stronger when we accept our differences and use those differences to work together to achieve the greater good. This cannot be achieved if we do not listen to ideas that are not our own. We must be open to the other side, to the possibility that we are wrong; we must be open to work together to find the truth and to solve problems together; only then will we see and progress (something that, as a liberal or “progressive,” should be the ultimate goal). Thank you.