"Expressions at demonstration aren’t representative of CES’ mission"

A letter in today's Evergreen:

Editor:

In Monday’s Evergreen, I was disturbed to read that at peaceful demonstration conducted by the WSU College Republicans, a CES professor called a student a “white shitbag.” For a department concerned with “enhancing student abilities to appreciate our differences and to negotiate our way through an increasingly interconnected world so that we may become better informed, caring, citizens,” I found that remark a very surprising way to “negotiate” differences.

A CES professor using a derogatory racial remark is ironic but even more disconcerting is this same professor called the fence “no different than a confederate flag or a swastika.” So a symbolic fence that represents keeping illegal immigrants from crossing the border is on the same level as a symbol responsible for the defense of slavery or the holocaust of millions of people. Is this what they teach in CES? Why are my tax dollars and tuition supporting this?

I agree a forum would be a better way to express opinions, but the College Republicans decided to hold a peaceful demonstration as was their right. A better way for the CES department to counter the opinions of the Republicans would have been to encourage CES majors to hold a demonstration of their own or set up a forum. No student should ever be required to request a carte blanche from the CES department to demonstrate peacefully.

Andrew Keck senior, biochemistry