<p>just testing the waters of political leanings of people who are in/applied/just read this forum. I'm wondering how much of a voice the conservatives have at Williams.. does liberalism seem to be the de facto campus creed? I mean I know I'm stereotyping a liberal arts college as being left-leaning, so I'm wondering to what extent that's the case at Williams- e.g. does joining the democratic club on campus mean anything? does being really passionate about politics and being progressive put you in a relatively small group, which can then hold lively discourse with the garfield club (which I'm assuming is a relatively small group) ?
sorry- mad questions</p>
<p>My question exactly!!!! I was discussing this with a friend today as how most campus are left-leaning!!! My son wants a campus where he can get diversity with politics as well. As a parent I don't want his political views to be influenced by one side! Anyone else with me on this???</p>
<p>Speaking of Bush, I was at a small symposium with his brother, Gov. Jeb, today.</p>
<p>All I can say is... Jeb definitely has all the eloquence in the family.</p>
<p>khm, I think that no matter where your son goes, he will not be influenced entirely by one side if he doesn't let himself be. If you have taught him not to be easily persuaded and to consider both sides of an argument, then he probably will, despite the college. :) I mean, I am a self-confirmed liberal (and in my Contemporary Issues class, we took a test at the beginning of the class to determine where we'd sit--and I am the most liberal in my class), yet I always consider both sides equally on topics I know little about--and I will at least think about all good counterarguments to mine. That being said, even moderates have their slight leanings, and your son will probably find his on his own.</p>
<p>Anyways, sorry to go a bit off-topic. I guess I'd like to know the atmosphere too. It's a comfort thing sometimes. :)</p>
<p>But of course, it's no fun to argue against yourself.</p>
<p>I agree 100% It helps to hear it from someone else!!! Thanks for your input!!!</p>
<p>You're welcome! Glad to know that I was helpful!</p>
<p>I'm politically radical.</p>
<p>any thoughts on Ann Coulter or Bill O'Reilly?</p>
<p>First of all, I would like to point out that Williams is in MA, and you're asking if liberalism is the de facto campus creed. It's in Massachusetts. Second of all, if you are really passionate about politics, you should already know that anything in MA is going to be liberal.</p>
<p>right. because the kennedy family and legal gay marriage are in ma. </p>
<p>I wanted to know how much the stereotype of college liberalism was true at williams... I was wondering because what's been statistically shown is that colleges across the board have a liberalizing effect on students, not necessarily that the majority of students who have really strong political views are liberal at colleges. I'm asking about Williams in particular as a college, not as an institution in Massachusetts. For all location matters, Williams could be in the Green, Taconic, or maybe Pocono Mountains and I'm not sure if its political culture would change. What does being in MA really have to do with this? I understand that most northeastern colleges are probably going to be left-leaning, I just wanted to know what kind of political debate exists with conservatives at the college.</p>
<p>Great response Tophe- I would also like someone to respond. I think if no one does, you got your answer.</p>
<p>No discussion needed, it's just true.</p>
<p>well you have to keep in mind that at a place like williams, people are hailing from all over the globe, not just mass. however with that said i'll be going to williams next year, i'm from mass, and i'm very left leaning. as for the rest of that campus, i'm not entirely sure. on my visit i did get a liberal vibe, which is to be expected at lots of college campuses, although i did catch one or two bush bumper stickers around some dorms.</p>
<p>Williams is supposed to be one of the more politically balanced and moderate LACs. I have a college guidebook that lists the political leanings of each college, and Williams is considered "Split," as is Amherst. One of the reasons I probably won't end up at Williams is because I get the impression that its a bit too conservative. It's all relative though, and I'm visiting tomorrow, so I'll see first-hand what the political climate is like.</p>
<p>You could learn a lot on this subject by browsing the Williams Record and the college website. Neither the Democrats@Williams nor the James Garfield Republican Clubs have updated their websites since 2002--despite a very contentious presidential election in 2004 that you may have heard about. There was an article in the March 6 issue by a student--"Does anyone care?"--decrying the lack of student activism in politics and causes. The article linked below shows that, as is the case in virtually every northeastern American college, the students are overwhelmingly Democrats who voted for Kerry in the last election.
<a href="http://www.williamsrecord.com/wr/?view=article§ion=news&id=5970%5B/url%5D">http://www.williamsrecord.com/wr/?view=article§ion=news&id=5970</a></p>
<p>Yet the idea that school has either a conservative or liberal feel would be way off the mark, IMO. My four years as an avid Williams-watcher have left me with the impression that the students there are well-informed, aware of what's going on, but too busy being Williams students--working hard and enjoying their college years--to spend much time arguing about politics. There is something to the "Purple Bubble" concept....when you are there, it's all about the students and the place. There's no sense of being in the state that sends Kerry and Kennedy back to the Senate year after year. It really seems to me to be a nearly apolitical environment.</p>
<p>I want to be careful not to leave the impression that the students are apathetic--that is not the case. The college has brought a steady and balanced stream of national political figures/commentators to the school over the years, and the events are popular and well-attended. But if you're looking for a school that regularly sends busloads of students to march in demonstrations---go to Wesleyan.</p>
<p>As a current student at Williams, hopefully my input on this subject will help out. I think in terms of the ideological split between students, a poll once showed that roughly 80% of the student body are more or less general, while the rest are more right-leaning. However, I would by no means take those statistics as an accurate guide to the political culture at Williams. What those numbers fail to indicate are the diversity of political thought here at Williams. In other words, it's for the most part pointless to use labels such as "liberal" or "conservative". I've discussed issues with students who may be vehemently anti-war and pro-choice, yet more conservative on the immigration debate. You can't exactly group together things like foreign policy, social issues, and fiscal policy as a package into one ideological camp or the other.</p>
<p>I would also argue that the Williams student body is more conservative than people assume. One has to remember that a large number of students still come from privileged, elite backgrounds that tend to lean more to the right. Moreover, there are a good number of students who probably describe themselves as liberal, but are either not well-informed enough or passionate enough to stand behind so-called liberal positions. For example, at the beginning of the fall semester, the professor of a foreign policy course (dealt with America's relationship with the Middle East after 9/11) handed out surveys that were supposed to gauge the political leanings of the class. Surprisingly enough, at least on issues of foreign policy, though the class more or less derided the Bush administration's policies, it generally agreed with statements that would be called conservative. </p>
<p>The last thing I'll mention is my own personal change in political beliefs after having come to Williams. At the beginning of freshman year (I'm now a sophomore), I would've categorized myself as a "Bush-hater", at least on issues of foreign policy. In general, I'd have called myself conservative on social issues (e.g. abortion, stem-cell research) and liberal on foreign policy issues. However, I have found myself becoming increasingly conservative towards foreign policy as well. That's not to say I necessarily support the war in Iraq, for example, but I no longer hold the same views I once had. This is more or less due to material studied in my political science courses, but also because I have a tendency to play devil's advocate. Because the vast majority of Williams students are against the war, I found many opportunities to try and pick apart their arguments and find support for the other side.</p>
<p>...and just one last thing. With a few exceptions, almost all of my friends tend to lean very left on social issues. I do happen to feel very strongly about issues like abortion or gay marriage. Not surprisingly, this has resulted in not a few dinner-table discussions in which I'm the only one supporting my side of the debate. Fortunately, I feel very secure in my beliefs, and I've always enjoyed intellectual debate, so I rather enjoy those moments. But for anyone coming to Williams who may espouse less-than-liberal views, be warned that you may be very frustrated unless you find very like-minded friends.</p>