The suspension of student Thaddeus Pryor from Colorado College, and the expulsion of his friend, Lou Henriques, over Yik Yak comments, has caught nationwide attention. David Hendrickson, professor of Political Science, not only criticized the punishment, but regarded it as “illegitimate.”
The College Fix, which has covered the situation, pointed to an interview with Hendrickson from Cipher, the student-run magazine.
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Hendrickson emphasized he is seeking all the facts in the case. But, from what he has ascertained so far, he’s not thrilled with it. He said the students’ “banishment… was procedurally unfair and grossly disproportionate to the offense.” Hendrickson is not merely concerned for the students, but the school as well:
Hendrickson went on to sharply criticize the school, pointing out that the students “turned themselves in and offered profuse apologies.” He offered that “the administration’s conduct teaches the lesson that cooperation with the dean’s office is imprudent and that dishonesty may, after all, be the best policy.”
This is especially the case when other posts “involved a wide range of ethnic slurs, initially regarding whites, but descending to just about everybody on the planet—some apparently offered as jests, others just plain spiteful and mean.” Hendrickson suggested that:
It is later pointed out in Hendrickson’s response that:
Hendrickson does not merely wish to know all the facts of the case, and supports the petition, but also invited “students to write to me with their accounts” as “the the context is vital in understanding the justice of the punishments administered to the two students.”
Making the punishments even worse, Hendrickson noted, is that they are “as severe as the school can offer and are more draconian than other cases that, on the face of it, are much more serious, involving sexual assault or broken jaws.”
Hendrickson does give credit to the school where it is due, as they modified the punishments. He believes it “seems to reflect recognition that the administration’s initial reaction was over the top,” though notes the school authorities “need to move further in the right direction.”
The College Fix found this except particularly fitting:
Hendrickson makes another point, one which is not so obvious, but nevertheless important. He notes how when the school admits students, “we take on an obligation to care for them—to treat them as an end, and not as a means.” Thus, the school failed on such a front as well.
Much has been made of Thaddeus Pryor’s comments, who said about black women that “They matter, they’re just not hot.” Lou Henriques received the worser punishment, and for making a South Park reference. His comment of “Race War. Race War. Race War.” was based off of the episode, “With Apologies to Jesse Jackson.” Hendrickson concedes it was not an appropriate comment, but it did not deserve expulsion:
The rest of the interview continues to be a lengthy one, but is nevertheless worth reading for Hendrickson’s points on freedom of speech and expression on campus.
