McCroskey Commentary: Video Exposes Evergreen State College Behavior for What It Is

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A few years ago, I began questioning the cost of a college education, and the value of one based largely on the liberal nonsense that is far too often taught on campus. And that was before all the safe space nonsense, riots and destruction occurred, which has only confirmed it.

How any of that will make smarter, better leaders and prepare them for life in any field was beyond me. And while it was no surprise that it eventually would happen at liberal Evergreen College, it was a bit surprising to learn what set this one off.

Apparently the school has something called a voluntary "day of absence" and a "day of presence" and has for years. Again, not really surprising, but there is an online video by an alum that explains what this “important” volunteer event is all about. Mostly, it seemed to me, like justifying bad behavior by students.

That’s when I realized this whole takeover of the campus and yelling thing was all about one professor’s email saying he didn’t agree with it and that it no longer appeared voluntary.

Professor Bret Weinstein described how students blocked campus security and later gathered in a meeting “far crazier than the video you just showed.” Why, you ask? Because his email was deemed “racist” by students when he wrote the following:

“There is a huge difference between a group or coalition deciding to voluntarily absent themselves from a shared space in order to highlight their vital and underappreciated roles (the theme of the Douglas Turner Ward play “Day of Absence,” as well as the recent Women’s Day walkout), and a group or coalition encouraging another group to go away. The first is a forceful call to consciousness, which is, of course, crippling to the logic of oppression. The second is a show of force, and an act of oppression in and of itself.”

I wonder if they even understood what he wrote? I doubt it.

After taking over buildings and intimidating staff, the college position was to do nothing and allow the campus police to do nothing as well. After the fact, the college president said, among other things, this:

“We may disagree with each other,” his statement reads. “However, disagreement is one thing; dehumanization is another …” and  “This behavior is wrong and must stop. It does not represent us, and we will not allow it to define us.”

Unfortunately those words, coupled with a directed nonresponse (and some national attention), have done just that.



But the real kicker is that somehow the video was secured and placed online and the college cupcakes are complaining it was stolen, demanding action by the college.

Presumably by demanding a criminal investigation be conducted by the same campus police the protesters were yelling and swearing at.

If you watch the video, despite the protesters complaining that slick editing made them look bad, I don’t think editing had anything to do with it — they did look bad. For the most part, it’s all screaming profanity at people, demanding they listen, but shouted down if they try to answer the shouted obscene-laced question or statement hurled at them.

In fact, for such a highly regarded (although I don’t know by who) liberal arts school like Evergreen, most of the students in the video couldn’t put two sentences together without the “F” word used several times. Very classy.

Evergreen has no one to blame but themselves. They accept bad behavior for liberal causes and have for years. If you Google riots at Evergreen, you’ll find them and their pride “challenging authority.” That’s fine if you're challenging ideas, but nothing in the videos did that. They just looked like bullies.

If you want to see what passes as “challenging authority” though, the videos are online. Warning: Rated R for mature audiences due to language and some seriously bad behavior.

But you won’t see anything resembling “mature” on the videos I watched.

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John McCroskey was Lewis County sheriff from 1995 to 2005. He lives outside Chehalis, and can be contacted at musingsonthemiddlefork@yahoo.com.