IF RHETORIC is the only standard, then American universities are certainly the most tolerant places in the world. The typical college student will hear the word "tolerance" or its counterpart "diversity" dozens of times before he or she has even attended class. In theory, tolerance is an essential part of the academic environment. During the past few weeks, however, events showed that at some elite universities, the concept of tolerance is applied quite selectively.
The first, most controversial piece of news was the revelation that Yale University recruited a former high-ranking member of the Taliban to attend classes. A few days later, the Supreme Court upheld a law that requires all universities, if they receive federal funds, to allow military recruiters equal access to students. The law had been opposed by a coalition of law schools, including Yale's. While Yale's decisions are admittedly more absurd than most universities', they expose the hypocritical attitude that often hides behind the mask of tolerance in higher education.
On Feb. 26, the New York Times Magazine ran a cover story about a new student at Yale named Sayed Rahmatullah Hashemi. What made Rahmatullah'spresence as a part-time student so remarkable was his former occupation as a spokesman for the Taliban government in Afghanistan. He had a brief moment of fame in "Fahrenheit 9/11," in which he was addressed by a woman denouncing the Taliban's oppression of women, such as chopping off the fingers of women who wore nail polish. Mr. Rahmatullah scornfully replied, "I'm really sorry for your husband. He might have a very difficult time with you."
What makes this situation even more surreal is that Mr. Rahmatullah was not merely admitted to Yale, but actively recruited by the university. It certainly wasn't because of his academic qualifications, as he never finished fifth grade. Instead, Yale recruited him to increase diversity, for in their words, "Universities are places that must strive to increase understanding." Benjamin Gonzalez, a freshman at Yale, put it this way: "If we didn't accept him and try to learn from him, how could we say we're this diverse body and institution of higher learning?"
Buried in these familiar, accepting words is the disturbing implication that we can learn valuable lessons from a fundamentalist terrorist regime. If Rahmatullah fully renounced his earlier views and Taliban career, his admittance might be less outrageous. The most he will admit, though, is a statement like this from the Yale Daily News, "There were certain elements of the Taliban which were radical and gave the Taliban the bad name it has today. But other people in the Taliban wanted to unify the country and disarm the people." That's hardly a clear rejection of his Taliban past.
At the same time Yale is entertaining a former member of the Taliban, it remains hostile to the American military. On March 6, the Supreme Court upheld the Solomon Amendment against a challenge by several law schools, including Yale's, called the Forum for Academic Institutional Rights. The amendment required that all universities receiving federal funds grant access to military recruits. However, while the military triumphed in this case, the hostility remains. ROTC, expelled from Yale after protests during the Vietnam War, is still denied a program at the school.Ostensibly, this is because of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy concerning gays and lesbians, which Yale considers a violation of human rights. Fortunately for Rahmatullah, Yale wasn't quite so offended by the Taliban's policy of murdering gays when he applied.
Why would a university that opposes American military that discourages homosexuality enroll a member of the Taliban, from a regime that murdered homosexuals? One reason is seen in this statement by Della Stentiles, who helps run a feminist Weblog at Yale, "As a white American feminist, I do not feel comfortable making statements or judgments about other cultures, especially statements that suggest one culture is more sexist and repressive than another." It's the idea that foreign cultures ought be held to a lower standard than our own. In the minds of many in academia, the admirable ideal of tolerance has been perverted into the attitude of moral relativism.
Unfortunately, these sort of beliefs are not limited to just Yale. Last year saw a similar scandal erupt over Ward Churchill, who defended the 9/11 attacks but remains a professor at the University of Colorado. On the other hand, Larry Summers, the president of Harvard, was forced out of office for merely speculating on inherent differences between men and women. Incidents like these create an atmosphere of intellectual conformity, an atmosphere where "tolerance" is extended only to liberal orthodoxy and anti-Americanism.
Thus, we see the very same people who speak so strongly for feminism and gay rights in America recruit a homophobic, misogynistic terrorist into their university.
Stephen Parsley's column appears Wednesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at sparsley@cavalierdialy.com.
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