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Columbia College Today Spring 1968

Page 52

and, worse, young leftist preceptors ! and teaching assistants; that it had no ~ sense of reality any longer (ignoring :::;; things like academic freedom, majority sentiment, and alumni, administration, trustee, and public opinion); and that jt was acting as a representative of Columbia's faculty when in fact it was only a small rump group of self-appointed "saviors," as one put it. "You can bet that Melman, Harris, and that gang would not argue this doctrine of 'necessary accommodation to avoid bloodshed' if a right-wing group had seized the University, demanding control," said one disgruntled scholar. "Daniel Bell will have to write a sequel to his End of Ideology, called End of Standards. He and vVestin seem determined to scrap every remnant of academic principle to appease Engineering professor Seymo1t1" Melman, one of the most active pro-Strike supportthe left-wing kids, despite the rebels' ers, judging a paper airplane contest 011 campus last spring. putschist tactics and their coarse antiintellectualism," another said angrily. Several of the dissidents said they proposals. "We have the night," he Student Council in front of the faculty. would ask President Kirk to call a "real said. After he finished, three students Nevertheless, the appearance of the faculty meeting," meaning a special from the Columbia University Student leftist student leaders served to kick off convening of all assistant professors, Council, largely a do-little stronghold a stampede toward a vote for amnesty. associate professors, and professors for leftists and politicos that has for With noise and tumult that the Ad Hoc years been out of touch with much of Faculty Committee had not seen herefrom all schools of the University. The Ad Hoc group recessed again at the variety and breadth of Columbia tofore, moderate speakers were booed 11: 55, for 15 minutes. (All during the student opinion, spoke to the Faculty and pro-SDS and pro-amnesty speakers faculty deliberations, teachers came and distributed a statement, backing were cheered wildly. Sensing a decline and went in shifts to do guard duty in the striker's demands and demanding of re,lsoned discourse, the slightly pefront of Low, or at the campus gates.) also the "effective involvement of stu- culiar composition of the Ad Hoc body, 'Vhen the faculty group reconvened at dents and faculty in the governance of and the lateness of the hour (12:40), 12: 10 its composition was markedly the University." They urged the profes- economics professor Peter Kenen '54 smaller and was mysteriously different. sors to vote for amnesty since, as one of moved for adjournment. There were Many of the senior professors had gone them put it, "The danger of violence is shouts of "No, No! Amnesty now!" but home for the night and at least half so great that any solution that will pre- Kenen's motion was carried by a slim the group was under 30 years of age. vent it is necessary." The three, Dan 70-64 majority. Dozens of preceptors, teaching assist- Pellegrom, president of the Council, 'While the stampede for amnesty was ants, and instructors some from Tomec Smith, president of the General taking place, Professor Westin and his Teachers College, Barnard, and many Studies student body, and law student aides were meeting with Mark Rudd from General Studies - packed the Peter Bierstedt '65, were then submit- and his aides in Ferris Booth Hall. Alroom. Also present were almost a doz- ted to a series of questions, mostly by though Rudd sought the meeting, and en non-Columbia persons, who had moderates. "Is this a personal statement although it lasted for two hours, from slipped in somehow. There were two of the dozen students who signed it, or 10:30 to 12:30, nothing new was disC.C.N.Y. instructors and one instruc- a document that represents the opinion cussed. Rudd berated the Faculty netor from Queens College; two young of most of the University's students?" gotiators because individual professors College alumni who taught nowhere; Embarrassed, the three said it was their were going into the "liberated" buildpersonal statement but represented a young man who said he had been ings to encourage peaceful comproasked to teach at Columbia "next year." some "significant" student opinion. mise. "They are wrecking our solidarSaid one Government professor after "Doesn't this handbill totally support ity." He also accused 'Vestin and his looking around him, "This is just like the SDS actions?" The three refused to colleagues of reporting inaccurately to 19351 The leftists are packing the answer directly. "Why do you propose the Ad Hoc group what was actually amnesty?" Said one, "Because all of meeting." going on between the two negotiating vou have to deal with the facts, with At 12: 05 Professor Wallerstein, just back from Hamilton Hall, reported that reality, and forget about principles." teams. "The faculty is going to come the black students wanted the night to The three student leaders left, not hav- out for amnesty anyhow," said Rudd. deliberate some more about the faculty ing distinguished themselves or the 'Vestin said Rudd was crazy. Just then,

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Columbia College Today Spring 1968 by Barak Zahavy - Issuu