When I chose to attend AU two years ago, I was happy to hear about how free-spirited the place seemed to be. I didn't imagine it as a place where there was such an overwhelmingly liberal, socialistic opinion that if you denounced the state, you'd be censored from university publications.
Recently, a friend of mine wrote an article for AmWord, one of AU's publications. Knowing that I'm borderline anarchistic these days in my libertarian, anti-government views, I always offer an interesting perspective that gets people -- especially the far left -- really thinking about their own tax-and-spend, big government romance. When the author asked me for a quotation to include in her article about what students thought of Obama's image, I said the following: "What image? The 'hope' mural we see plastered all over the country? Portraying our president in the same way Hitler, Stalin and Fidel Castro were and are displayed in their respective countries?" When the author submitted the article to AmWord for publishing, my quotation was included. However, when the magazine was printed, it became apparent that the editors removed my quotation from the article, leaving the opinions of everyone else unchanged.
I understand my sentiments are strong, and I am not asking people to agree with me. However, what I am saying is not factually incorrect: most dictators are, in a sense, the sole subjects of any artistic creations in their countries. But such facts are irrelevant now. What is relevant is that AmWord took my views -- which I (and every other student at AU) have a constitutional right to spew to my heart's desire -- out of their publication, and censored me. This affects every student at AU.
I may not personally agree with many of the points made on campus, but I will defend at any cost the right of someone to have those views. I only ask for the same in return. Every student, whose tuition payments enable the university to exist, should be able to have their voice heard, so long as it does not hurt or infringe upon the rights of any other student. Censorship is prevalent on AU's campus. I should have known I would be censored, after recently learning on the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education's (FIRE) Web site that AU has a history of censorship.
Katelyn Hurley Sophomore, Kogod School of Business
