Republicans Not Welcome in USC 'Safe Space' for Marginalized Students

Hypocrisy abounds

The University of Southern California sponsors a student-led campus activism organization called "I, Too, Am USC" in which minority students, or those that feel marginalized, have a "safe space" to retreat and be protected from discrimination. But that comforting welcome doesn't extend to the super-minority of Republicans on the USC campus.

The president of the USC College Republicans group spoke with The College Fix to explain the online shaming he has experienced after weighing in on the "I, Too, Am USC" campus activism. Jacob Ellenhorn exposed the group's hypocrisy after creating his own meme using their tagline against a picture of himself stating, "I fight on because I am tired of getting weird looks for saying that I am a Republican and that I love my country." This post, appearing in the Republican group's private Facebook thread, was "somehow acquired" by the activists who accused Ellenhorn of being racist and white-privileged. College Fix quotes one comment: “Sounds like little man needs a couple wedgies and a few slaps upside the head.” Tolerance, indeed. Another said, "The privilege of privilege: no seeing, no knowing, no understanding. The Republican Party has lost the plot entirely."

Ellenhorn told the Fix:

All these groups talk about how inclusive they want to be, but most of the time the only one who feels unsafe is me. There is all this talk about creating safe places for people to express themselves, but if you have an opinion different than them, you are not allowed.

If they want to speak out for minorities, and indeed minorities need representation, why not make room for intellectual diversity on campus, as well? Minority student populations are not limited to skin color or sexual identity. I too am a minority because I have a different opinion.

The "I, Too" group proceeded to mock Ellenhorn and the GOP group as evidenced in their Facebook post below. The names were scratched out for privacy, but at least one "I,Too" supporter lobbied otherwise: "Their names should be released - aren't we all Trojan family after all?"

 

We are gracefully sipping our tea this morning ️ as our peers, our fellow Trojan "Family", provide us with more reasons...

Posted by I, Too, Am USC on Friday, June 12, 2015

 

And through it all, Ellenhorn easily sees the hypocrisy. "They are entitled to a 'safe space' yet I am the one they are attacking," he said. "These social activists are creating a narrative for me that paints me as a bigot, a racist, and of course, a sexist. This type of manipulation to keep people like me from voicing a different opinion is in itself an act of outrageous bigotry. This tendency to silence dissenters is essentially the beginnings of tyranny.”

From the Fix:

The 20-year-old communication major said it’s even more ironic how he has been targeted by those calling for “safe spaces” given his family’s history – his grandfather graduated from USC in 1944 and then graduated from its Medical School in 1948. At that time, USC had a Jewish quota in the Medical School, and only allowed three Jews in each class, according to Ellenhorn.

“But I don’t carry that on my shoulders,” he added. “That was then, this is now. It’s 2015.”

The posts below are just a sampling of those that qualify for a "safe space" on campus:

 

 

"Just because I am an African-American at USC doesn't mean I am an athlete." --Jasmine Johnson, c/o 2018. #ITooAmUSC #USC #Trojans #FightOn #beautifulisblack

Posted by I, Too, Am USC on Saturday, April 25, 2015

 

 

 

"To the girl who called me an Oreo in the 7th grade I DO NOT apologize for falling short of YOUR EXPECTATION of what a...

Posted by I, Too, Am USC on Wednesday, April 22, 2015

 

 

 

"I am INTELLIGENT, I am POETIC, I am a USC SPIRIT LEADER, I am a SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT (not because I'm black), I fight...

Posted by I, Too, Am USC on Thursday, April 16, 2015

 

 

 

"I fight on because women need to work harder for equal pay." --Helen Chung, c/o 2018. #ITooAmUSC #USC #Women #Womyn #Equality #EqualPay #FightOn

Posted by I, Too, Am USC on Monday, April 13, 2015

 

 

 

"I fight on because saying, "you're attractive for an INDIAN," isn't a compliment." --Kevin Ramlal, c/o 2017. #ITooAmUSC #FightOn #TrojanCrushTuesday #Trojans #USC #handsome #USCSCA #CinemaSchool

Posted by I, Too, Am USC on Tuesday, April 7, 2015

 

 

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