Over the past few weeks, I’ve been closely following the buzz surrounding Bush’s upcoming appearance at Commencement ’04 on Saturday, May 21.
My friend Matthew, a graduating senior, has been talking about this on his blog, callmematthew. He and John Zwier (I think) are spearheading an initiative (funded by Calvin) to make buttons that say “God is not Republican or a Democrat.”
I am personally in favor of non-intrusive protests such as buttons and armbands. There will be protesters at the corner of Burton and the East Beltline, on the south side of campus, but I doubt anyone will be allowed on campus with a sign. I may just sit on Commons Lawn reading a book (hopefully My Pet Goat, if I can find it). I don’t want to distract from the point of Commencement — honoring the graduates, including many close friends. On the other hand, I do want to clearly object to the polarization of the event by the very virtue of Bush’s invitation. Byker and other administration officials should have never sought out Bush for Commencement.
For further sources of information, check out the latest issue of Calvin’s Chimes student newspaper: an article by John Zwier and the letters to the editor.
To follow faculty/staff rants on the topic, visit http://www.calvin.edu/archive and click on “Calvin Matters” (this is only available for on-campus computers). I recommend a measure of grace and a dash of salt for reading their posts.
For more vitriolic (and only occasionally constructive) discussion, explore the Google Group set up by some graduates, Our Commencement Is Not Your Platform.
From what I’ve read, this is what may happen on Saturday:
-A faculty letter to the GR Press, signed by many.
-A student/alumni/friend ad in the GR Press, if enough funds are raised.
-Armbands (white?) and buttons (hopefully not metal ones, because the metal detectors won’t be kind to those).
-Protests on the south edge of campus
-Possible vocal disagreement from the crowd during Bush’s speech (unlikely).
I’ve had many great conversations with people about Bush coming to Calvin. My profs, in particular, have done a great job of drawing the controversy into the classroom and providing a forum for constructive discussion (an advantage of taking classes within the communications department). Props to Prof. Randy Bytwerk, Prof. Chris Smit, and Prof. Quentin Schultze.
However, a brief conversation with Case Lettinga on Wednesday left me a bit depressed. Case has historically been one of the most vocal opponents to Bush and the war on campus. He and I founded PAX, a student organization for peace during our freshman year. I still consider him a friend, and respect his opinions, even when I may be a bit more moderate. When I asked him Wednesday at the Spring Arts Festival what he was planning on doing, he replied with an apathy and tired disinterest of which I thought he was incapable. At this point in the semester, due in part to the heavy demands of term papers and exams, most students are tired of the controversy, don’t want to talk about it, and probably won’t care enough to do anything on graduation day. But when the most passionate students are equally apathetic, there is a serious problem. I sure hope at least a few students engage in thoughtful, significant, and respectful protest on Saturday.
A few more links:
A Washington Post column by Dan Froomkin.
Calvin’s official Commencement site.
James Stewart’s Bush at Calvin Roundup.
