Setting this thread to slow mode after numerous flags.
3 Likes
A few weeks ago (March 28, 2023), W&L’s student newspaper (the Ring-tum Phi) published an article by the Editor-In-Chief addressing “racial justice,” or the lack thereof, at W&L, as it relates to the name change controversy, the changed diploma, and other related issues.
Some student prospectives from the article:
Tanajia Moye-Green, ’23, said she did not know the diploma design had been changed. But she thinks the Board of Trustees did not broadcast the decision “because they didn’t want to make the alumni mad.”
“They were like, ‘We will do this one thing for you. We may not do any of the other things you asked for, but we’ll do this smaller thing. And we won’t tell anyone about it,’” Moye-Green said.
. . .
Rose Hein, ’22, is a postbaccalaureate fellow for the DeLaney Center studying southern race relations, with one area of focus on the outcomes of the “Change the Name” protests. Hein said the diploma change went largely unnoticed because it was overshadowed by the decision to not change the university’s name.
“Big disappointments can make everything seem really, really small. So you can forget that anything happened at all,” Hein said.
Hein has spent the past year interviewing 18 students who were closely tied to the spring 2021 protests.
“Essentially, what I found is that students are not actually interested in the history of George Washington and Robert E. Lee,” she said. “What they’re interested in is what having those two names on the university now means for their life as a student on this campus.”
Hein said these students cited evidence of the present impact of Robert E. Lee’s legacy on campus, including a 2018 pamphlet campaign from a North Carolina KKK chapter, advocating to “K-K-Keep the Name,” and the continued celebration of Lee-Jackson Day.
“A lot of students view Washington and Lee’s names as an invitation to these groups,” Hein said. “We cannot just isolate those individuals as being in the past, because their presence has present implications.”
. . .
Tripathi, the 2022 graduate, organized the ‘Change the Name’ walkout in March 2021. The turnout gave her some hope for change. But not much has come since, she said.
“Issue number one is that we’re still called Washington and Lee University,” Tripathi said.
And the changes that did happen, like renaming Lee Chapel to University Chapel, don’t amount to much, she added.
“Maybe some first years are coming in being like, ‘Oh, it’s University Chapel.’ They don’t know it was Lee Chapel,” Tripathi said. “But they know that Robert E. Lee is in there, like he’s literally in there. And you can’t help but feel that presence.”
. . .
Hein, who is researching the ‘Change the Name’ outcomes, thinks recording student perspectives about the protests is an important feat in itself.
“I want to make sure that someone has talked to the people who were pushing forward those protests, that the information is preserved,” Hein said. “Ultimately, the ‘Change the Name’ protests were about much, much more than the name of the university. They were about what was viewed as a much broader sense of failure from the university as a whole in the terms of racial equity.”
1 Like
As an alum, I am so encouraged to see that today’s undergrads feel that they can write and speak their experiences and opinions in their student newspaper without repercussions. That isn’t even true of the student newspapers at every big state flagship university in the nation. Speech is alive and well at W&L. Thanks for reminding us. Now carry on.
5 Likes
I feel like this confirms, actually, what we’ve been saying. Far from embracing the Lost Cause, the campus is wrestling, publicly and thoughtfully, with its history.
5 Likes
Fortunately, in the post Covid world, schools offer a bunch of remote options for kids who want to learn more first hand about the school.
4 Likes
I took a tour a couple of weeks ago with my DS and literally every other family on the tour was new to the school. I did not, however, ask to see their tax returns. They seemed like very normal people to me. And I am far from the boogyman rich.
4 Likes
Reminder that CC is supposed to a friendly and welcoming place.
1 Like
And they will do the research for different perspectives and ask questions just as we have throughout the process. It’s insulting to say I can’t find this sort of information (positive and negative) with my D23. None of this is hidden. It might be different if someone were asking and people were answering specific questions with firsthand knowledge and experience. That’s where the thread has gone awry.
3 Likes
Reminder that it is against the ToS to discuss moderation in threads. If anyone has an issue, please email the admins. Posts discussing moderation will be deleted without further comment.
1 Like
Has anybody’s mind been changed?
2 Likes
In what way?
We have toured 6 colleges with our DS24 so far. The most conservative school that we have toured was not W&L. We have been trying to visit a mix of schools with different political reputations. We are not looking any further south than W&L at this time.
I interpret “conservative leaning” to mean just that- leaning. That’s how I would describe it based on our tour, and I don’t think anything you pulled off the internet will change that. I simply don’t agree with all of your views of the information that you posted. I don’t interpret it in the same way.
2 Likes
Yes, that is my impression, too. W&L “leans conservative”. That is what I have heard from the moment I joined CC and this thread has confirmed it, IMO.
3 Likes
I have been following this thread but refrained from commenting.
I think more important than how a college campus tends to “lean” is whether free speech is facilitated and welcome on campus. IMO, elite colleges today tend to “lean” so hard one way which can be problematic because the result is many of these campuses tend to stifle dialogue. I want my kid to go to a college where students are free to express their thoughts, ideas and opinions, whether those “lean” conservative or liberal. I have a kid that has already graduated from a college that is known to be very liberal. So is my kid. I wish that my kid had been exposed to more views that challenged their own opinions and thinking, because that makes a more thoughtful student and citizen. It sounds like at W&L, because reportedly there is a faction of conservative students, that kids are tested by their classmates with opposing views on both sides. That sounds like a valuable education.
11 Likes
The thread is for people who had experience with W&L college to share their expectations versus their actual experiences. It is not to argue politics nor to engage in whataboutisms.
Posters are also requested not to make assumptions or inferences about the views of other people.
Thank you all for your understanding
4 Likes
In that case, I am happy to return to this thread to engage with anyone who has experience with W&L. Thank you for keeping it welcoming and friendly. 
2 Likes
I also appreciate the administration encourages diversity of thought. W&L follows the UChicago Principles for freedom of speech. After a significant number of students and faculty recently objected to a conservative shock jock guest speaker, the president responded with this letter. I agree that all student organizations should be allowed to invite speakers and express their views… and students with opposing views should be encouraged to challenge them in a thoughtful and respectful manner.
The president followed up the letter by personally donating $1000 to a local LGBTQ+ support organization.
5 Likes
I’ve set a timer on this thread. Not sure why this has become so contentious, but remember the Forum Rules exist for a reason. Thanks for your cooperation.
4 Likes