Washington and Lee University defends course
on 'How to Overthrow the State' where
students write revolutionary manifesto- as Newt
Gringrich leads critics saying it is a 'further
sign of insanity taking over higher education'
Daily Mail (UK),
by
Keith Griffith
Original Article
Posted By: Imright,
9/8/2020 5:19:35 PM
Washington and Lee University has defended its course titled 'How to Overthrow the Government' which requires students to write a revolutionary manifesto, after coming under fire from critics led by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.The president of the private liberal-arts university in Virginia on Monday issued a statement defending the course, which is one of 15 introductory writing seminars that first-year students are required to take.The controversy exploded after the course description gained notice, stating in part: 'This course places each student at the head of a popular revolutionary movement aiming to overthrow a sitting government
Reply 1 - Posted by:
marbles 9/8/2020 5:21:40 PM (No. 535064)
According to the university it's a creative writing course.
1 person likes this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
JL80863 9/8/2020 5:38:19 PM (No. 535073)
They should chaange the name to Marx and Lenin.
12 people like this.
Freedom of choice is what you got.
Freedom from choice is what you want.
- Devo
7 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
raphaela 9/8/2020 5:55:28 PM (No. 535078)
Remove all federal aid and charge the professor and administration with fomenting insurrection. That would get their attention.
22 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
Maggie2u 9/8/2020 6:36:27 PM (No. 535091)
I'll bet you $5 there are no exchange students from China taking this course.
9 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
SALady 9/8/2020 6:39:22 PM (No. 535092)
You mean the university with the name of a huge slave holder (Washington) and the head of the Confederate Army (Lee) is trying to be "woke" to the extreme.
Shouldn't they start by changing their name to Lenin and Mao, or Stalin and Castro, University to be true to their wokeness?!?!?!?
11 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
smokincol 9/8/2020 6:49:17 PM (No. 535095)
insanity is hardly an apt descriptive for a subject taught at a college level institution. the purpose of the class seems to be how to subvert an existing government.
9 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
MrDeplorable 9/8/2020 7:10:04 PM (No. 535109)
After the W&L snowflakes write their plans and strategies, they can have a real-world exercise by slipping through the fence some moonless night to try them out on the institution of higher education right next door: Virginia Military Institute, where every cadet's bedside companion is an M-14. Bugler, sound the charge!
7 people like this.
So, if this course was launched during a Clinton or Obama administration do you think Democrats would find this course to be acceptable?
Or, do you think the names of every student taking the course would somehow be exposed with a "leak" of their names?
2 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
BarryNo 9/8/2020 7:48:30 PM (No. 535122)
Sedition, anyone?
Check this ass back 50 years with a fine tooth comb and if you find anything out of place, toss him in jail for treason.
5 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
Thegranddanny 9/8/2020 8:57:51 PM (No. 535146)
If they try I'm sure the other college in the little town of Lexington Virginia will stop them cold. The Virginia Military Institute.
3 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
HPmatt 9/8/2020 10:08:10 PM (No. 535185)
Read it yourselves...
We live in strange times, when a first-year composition course can become national news. But that happened last week when "How to Overthrow the State: Historical Lessons from the Global South" — one of 15 introductory writing sections offered on a wide variety of topics this Fall Term — was distorted, sensationalized, and turned into political fodder on blogs, television, and social media. Some of our faculty have received threats that we have referred to law enforcement. In addition to defending the safety of our community members and expressing my unequivocal support for the free exchange of ideas in our classrooms and in the public arena, I want to reflect on the education we offer at Washington and Lee and the way that this particular course, which became the target of misguided criticism, actually exemplifies the best of what we do.
I am currently teaching a philosophy seminar on the university mission statement, which commits us to provide "a liberal arts education that develops students' capacity to think freely, critically, and humanely and to conduct themselves with honor, integrity, and civility." Critical thinking and good writing are tightly connected. In the wise words of cartoonist Dick Guindon, which I encourage my students to heed, "writing is nature's way of letting you know how sloppy your thinking is." Teaching students to write is fundamental to our mission, and we require all students to take a course in English composition or to demonstrate equivalent competence.
The goal of our introductory writing courses is to impress upon our students the power of the well written word and to strengthen their ability to write clearly and persuasively. The first step in successful teaching, no matter the subject, is getting students' attention and capturing their imagination. Professors from a wide range of departments, including Africana Studies, English, History, Philosophy, and Theater, develop creative themes drawn from their own areas of expertise. Titles this term include "Monsters Among Us," "Mysteries and Puzzles," and "Shut Up & Play: Black Athletes and Activism." The topics vary greatly, but the focus of every section is the appreciation and production of good writing.
What better way to teach the power of writing — the idea that the pen is mightier than the sword — than to ask students to read and evaluate historical texts that aspired to move their original audiences to revolution? The Declaration of Independence, for example, is one of the first works on the syllabus in "How to Overthrow the State." The revolution announced by Jefferson's political words, and accomplished by Washington's military deeds, brought the United States into being. Students in this course read primary texts from numerous other historical periods, including the "South Carolina Articles of Secession." The course does not advocate revolution or train students for it. It studies how revolutionaries have written in order to help students become more powerful and persuasive writers. That is directly in the service of our mission, and I'm proud we offer this course at Washington and Lee.
The overreaction to "How to Overthrow the State" also calls for reflection on civility, another of the core values in our mission statement. Our community — students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents — is large and intellectually diverse. Individual members disagree about many things, ranging from course titles to the name of the university. We are expressly committed to encouraging all to speak their minds freely and to consider carefully alternative points of view. It is incumbent upon us to treat each other with respect and not perpetrate or tolerate personal attacks. We each have important rights and responsibilities as members of the W&L community, which I urge us all to recognize and uphold.
I try to view every challenge as an opportunity, and the challenge posed by this episode is an opportunity to remind ourselves of the value of liberal arts education and the means by which we provide it. I look forward to being in the classroom with my students on Tuesday, teaching Aristotle, careful reading, critical thinking, and good writing.
1 person likes this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
HPmatt 9/8/2020 10:30:12 PM (No. 535200)
Washington & Lee is a great, small (400 in each years class), liberal arts school in the traditional sense. The honor code is taken from Robt E Lee - 'a gentleman will not lie, cheat or steal'. Students still honor it, if there is a violation, they meet in Lee Chapel, hear the violation, and vote to expel or not. Code was amended when the school went Co-ed in the 1980s (90s?). If you have not been there, observed its traditions, as well as the changes, you don't know what you're talking about. Some concern the school might get 'too modern', with the new Yankee President and all, but very few schools give as great an education as it does. I think a lot of the true liberal nuttery comes from their Law school, typically students from all over, and leftist law faculty to boot.
1 person likes this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
dwa 9/9/2020 12:05:43 AM (No. 535257)
"Higher education"?? That is not the right description. The right description is Higher indoctrination.
1 person likes this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
Trigger2 9/9/2020 12:43:02 AM (No. 535274)
Tell me how that Washington & Lee University isn't committing sedition and treason. That's not freedom of speech by any stretch.
3 people like this.
Perhaps they should have titled the course another way ? If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, most likely it's a duck.
I hate what they have done to Virginia. Hate it.
1 person likes this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
JackBurton 9/9/2020 2:59:42 PM (No. 535837)
There should be a course about how to successfully stiff these schools for their tuition and dorm fees. Just sayin'.
0 people like this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
doctorfixit 9/9/2020 5:58:47 PM (No. 535969)
De-Fund government "education". Privatize, give customers choice and a voice.
0 people like this.
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