Political Graduation Ceremonies I've been reading about this a lot lately. Seems to me there is a time and place for everything. A graduation ceremony is not an appropriate time to review foreign policy or make partisan speeches. That seems like a hijacked ceremony to me. I don't want to hear about any of that stuff at a ceremony designed to honor the work of all of those who graduated. What a crock. http://www.rrstar.com/localnews/your_community/rockford/20030520-4814.shtml Speaker disrupts RC graduation A New York Times reporter delivers an antiwar speech that offended many. By CARRIE WATTERS, Rockford Register Star >> Click here for more about Carrie ROCKFORD — New York Times reporter Chris Hedges was booed off the stage Saturday at Rockford College’s graduation because he gave an antiwar speech. Two days later, graduates and family members, envisioning a “go out and make your mark” send-off, are still reeling. Guests wanting to hear the author and Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter are equally appalled. And College President Paul Pribbenow is rethinking the wisdom of such controversial topics at future commencements. This is Pribbenow’s first graduation. Hedges began his abbreviated 18-minute speech comparing United States’ policy in Iraq to piranhas and a tyranny over the weak. His microphone was unplugged within three minutes. Voices of protest and the sound of foghorns grew. Some graduates and audience members turned their backs to the speaker in silent protest. Others rushed up the aisle to vocally protest the remarks, and one student tossed his cap and gown to the stage before leaving. Mary O’Neill of Capron, who earned a degree in elementary education, sat in her black cap and gown listening. She was stunned. She turned to Pribbenow and asked him why he was letting the speech continue. He said it was freedom of speech. Pribbenow later said when people stop listening to ideas, even controversial ones, it is the death of institutions like 157-year-old Rockford College. In tears, O’Neill left the ceremony. Her husband, Kevin, sat in the audience with their daughter and was as indignant as his wife. “This is a ceremony. ... The day belongs to the students. It doesn’t belong to a political view,” he said. Hedges, a war correspondent, criticized military heroic ideals that grow during war. The fervor sacrifices individual thought for temporarily belonging to something larger, he said. Hedges sympathized with U.S. soldiers. He characterized them as boys from places such as Mississippi and Arkansas who joined the military because there were no job opportunities. “War in the end is always about betrayal. Betrayal of the young by the old, of soldiers by politicians and idealists by cynics,” Hedges said in lecture fashion as jeers and “God Bless Americas” could be heard in the background. After his microphone was again unplugged, Pribbenow told Hedges to wrap it up. Elinor Radlund of Rockford read Hedges’ book on war and was horrified at what she said was the audience’s rude behavior. She was indignant she couldn’t hear the speaker. “They were not behaving as people in an academic setting, where you’re supposed to be open to a great many ideas,” Radlund said. Pribbenow said Rockford College takes no political stance, but the job is to challenge students. He reminded audience members of the liberal arts college’s commitment to listening to other viewpoints. It didn’t happen. Spontaneous reaction led 66-year-old Gerald Kehoe of rural Boone County down the aisle in his first time to protest anything. He was hurt to hear a verbal attack on the country. He attended Saturday’s commencement to watch his daughter graduate, the fourth from Rockford College. Rockford College political science professor Bob Evans said it’s a reminder of the “raw edges of emotion” on the issue. A student who rushed the stage could face reprimand although he still received his diploma. “It’s important to go on the record that it’s inappropriate behavior,” Pribbenow said.
Ahhh, I love irony. The only thing I remember from my college graduation is the college president's lengthy plea for the graduates to give money to the college. Sigh.
Maybe I'm missing something, but how is this speech partisan? My understanding is that "partisan" (in this context) would describe something that adheres to the philosophy of a particular political party. However, I see no mention of any political party in the speech. While I'll agree that his speech was political and probably unacceptably so, I think it's misleading to call it partisan.
fair enough...partisan is not really what i meant...thanks for pointing that out. political speech is really what i'm talking about.
Life is a collection of memorable experiences..this chump just cheapened one of those for a group of people who had earned and deserved better.
"Partisan" is an appropriate word. It indicates a devotion to a party or faction, but it doesn't have to be a formal political party. In this case, it would simply be the ant-war faction. But, whatever; I think the meaning is clear enough. In any case, it sounds like a terrible speech. When a speaker makes no effort to speak on a topic that is appopriate to both his audience and the occassion, he's failed before even starting. It sounds like he addressed neither the audience nor the occassion.
Here's another: http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/5887922.htm Donahue injects politics into speech Comments on liberals draw boos as well as cheers at graduation Associated Press RALEIGH - Talk show pioneer Phil Donahue got catcalls and cheers Saturday for a politically tinged commencement address at N.C. State University. A handful of the nearly 4,000 graduating at N.C. State walked out of the ceremony at the RBC Center when Donahue began listing "what liberals believe." Donahue said constitutional rights and privileges have been eroded and he made a backhanded reference to the war in Iraq. "Only Congress can declare war," he said to some cheers and boos, "and not just one man, the president." The basic liberties of citizens are being undermined by the war on drugs, Donahue said, and by a "trend toward the sword rather than a trend toward civility." What liberals believe, he said, "is that no one in authority should tell you to `shush,' that executing r****ded teenagers is wrong, and that unions give workers a deserved place at the bargaining table." Donahue, 67, whose most recent talk show on MSNBC was canceled in February after six months, urged the graduates to help renew basic American constitutional values of free speech, separation of church and state, and respect for the rights of minorities. "Your mission is to challenge your public servants and bring America back to basic constitutional values," he told the students. He urged political conservatives to be tolerant of those with differing views. "Take a liberal to lunch," he said. "Take a Dixie Chick to lunch." Donahue is a nine-time Daytime Emmy winner for his syndicated talk show, which began in 1967 and aired nationally from 1970 to 1996, paving the way for dozens of such shows to follow. He was invited to speak in part because he and an N.C. State professor both attended the University of Notre Dame. He got loud applause by noting that N.C. State beat Notre Dame in this year's Gator Bowl. "I came looking for liberals," he said, "and here at N.C. State I found friends."
Equally disgusting... President Bush addresses USC’s Class of 2003, unveils new hopes for Middle East http://uscnews.sc.edu/bushspeech.html
Thank you I knew that I heard that, I just didn't want to look for it. I see this a lot now, people giving political speeches at college commencement ceremonies.
Just about every politician (or politico) who makes a graduation speech does this sort of thing now. The media actually is briefed on comments before the ceremony and they show up to record the thoughts. I find that to be really assanine behavior. In case the speaker hadn't noticed, graduation isn't about the speaker. It's about the graduates.
This is what a graduation speech is supposed to look like. This one is kind of famous by Barbara Bush. http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/biographies/firstlady/wellesleyspeech.html
LOL...that Bush speech sounded like a State of the Union address. Anyhow...the speech given by Michael Dell at UT was great. The commencement overall was great too.
Yep, Bush Jr. should learn from his mom. Her speech was a classic, a great example of how to be politically correct without being political.
Difficult to say anything substantively relevant without expressing some form of partisanship. Perhaps the best that can be hoped for is that the viewpoint be mainstream and generally inoffensive. Otherwise, there's a tendency to fall back into sleep-inducing euphemisms and lame cliches. My undergrad speaker gave a very appropriate speech about public service. It was the May following 9/11/01, so I suppose it made some sense. But it was a touch issue in some respects - and he tried so hard to offend nobody that in the end it was kind of pointless. Agreed that there shouldn't be anything dreadfully one-sided...
Catholic prelate offends graduates, faculty Gay.com / PlanetOut.com Network Thursday, May 22, 2003 A prominent Roman Catholic cardinal spoke against gays last Saturday during a commencement speech at Georgetown University, prompting some students and faculty to leave in protest. Cardinal Francis Arinze of Nigeria had been invited to speak at the Washington, D.C.-based school about Christian-Muslim relations, but he talked about how religious faith and traditional family values are threatened in society. "In many parts of the world, the family is under siege," he said, according to a transcript of the speech. "It is opposed by an anti-life mentality as is seen in contraception, abortion, infanticide and euthanasia. It is scorned and banalized by p*rnography, desecrated by fornication and adultery, mocked by homosexuality, sabotaged by irregular unions and cut in two by divorce." A theology professor and several students walked out during the speech, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. About 70 faculty members also signed a letter of protest, which was delivered on Wednesday to Jane McAuliffe, dean of the university's school of arts and sciences. A few faculty members told the newspaper that while the remarks may be in line with Catholic doctrine, they were inappropriate for a graduation ceremony. "I personally was rather offended by it," said Tommaso Astarita, a professor of history. "I thought it was divisive and inappropriate." Francis DeBernardo, executive director of Washington-based News Ways Ministry, which serves GLBT Catholics, also found the remarks offensive. "Family life may have its challenges and social pressures, but it is irresponsible and ill-informed to list homosexuality as one of them," DeBernardo told the Gay.com/PlanetOut.com Network. "Since so many Catholics in the pews are now familiar with and accepting of lesbian/gay people, they will recognize such a remark as ignorant." Cardinal Arinze, 70, has been mentioned as a possible successor to John Paul II, which would make him the first African pope in church history.
I pushed for Woody Allen at my graduation. This was right after Annie Hall We ended up with an unknown member of the Board of Directors. Drat!
We had Al Roker (used to be fat weatherman). Don't remember a damn thing he talked about, but that it was pretty funny. I'm pretty sure it wasn't political (or at least didn't have a liberal stance) b/c that probably would have caused an uproar at A&M.
