From: kowan@ai.mit.edu (Rich Cowan)
Date: Fri, 14 Oct 94 13:52:28 EDT
Subject: UCP: Beware of the PC Police

[Excerpted from _Guide to Uncovering the Right on Campus_, edited by
Dalya Massachi and Rich Cowan.  ISBN 0-945210-03-05. This article may
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Copyright 1994 University Conversion Project.

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Beware of the PC Police

by Tony Fabri

        I had a horrible dream the other night. It was the first day of
classes, and I was sitting in a lecture hall listening to a
professor (of English, history, or political science - take your
pick) as he discussed the class I had just signed up for.
        "Of course, " he began, "you are all going to become feminist,
Marxist, environmentalist, pot-smoking, white male-hating liberals
by the end of this course.  Anyone who resists this conversion
will receive a failing grade and will be beaten severely by the PC
Police."  He smiled a broad, devilish grin.  "Any questions?"
        I looked around nervously.  Nobody seemed upset by what the
professor had just announced.  I raised my hand sheepishly.  The
professor glared at me for a moment then asked me what I wanted.
"Well, I was  just wondering, but isn't college a place for new
and diverse ideas?  And doesn't this type of curriculum stifle
open debate and expression?
        "The professor jumped from behind his podium, pointed directly
at  me and shouted, "Reactionary!  Take him away!"
        Two side doors burst open and several men wearing tie-dyed T-
shirts and Birkenstocks marched into the room.  The PC Police!
They all had long, unwashed hair, and as they grabbed my arms and
began to drag me out of the room, I noticed they smelled of
incense.  Sandalwood, perhaps.
        One of them twisted my arm behind my back and said, "We have
ways of dealing with free-thinkers like you!"  I screamed a scream
of absolute and uncontroIlable terror.
        And then I woke up. I was dripping with sweat, but thankful to
be alive. I looked at the test pattern on my TV set and laughed.
That's the last time I watch Rush Limbaugh before going to bed.
        That nightmare isn't really one of my own, but it sure seems to
be one of Rush's.  And he's not alone.  It seems to be a generally
accepted fact that America's universities are held in the iron
grip of liberal orthodoxy.  For the past two or three years,
conservatives have brought forward case after case, "proving" that
this PC conspiracy actually exists.
        I'm not denying that some schools have codes of conduct which
deny students some basic rights in the name of diversity and
multiculturalism.   These schools are, however, rare, and the
label of political correctness has grown to encompass much more
than these few, legitimate targets.
        What exactly does it mean to be politically correct, anyway?
Because politics deals mainly with popularity and public opinion,
it seems logical that a politically correct position should be the
one that is most popular, regardless of its merit.  If this were,
in fact, the  meaning of the term, then I would join Rush and his
conservative groupies in denouncing political correctness.
        lf you think about it, though, popularity has very little to do
with whether a position is deemed politically correct.  The
positions that most often receive the PC label are those that are
unpopular with the general public.  Support for affirmative
action, gay and lesbian  rights, or programs that help those
coping with poverty are all "PC" positions, but are not considered
wildly popular.
        Personally, I've heard many people say how "un-PC" they are or
how much they hate those "PC types," but I've never heard anyone
brag about how politically correct they are.  Being labeled
"politically correct"  is sort of the  199Os equivalent of being
called a "commie" or "pinko"  in the 1950s.
        Of course, none of this answers the original question:  what
makes a particular position "PC"?  Some might say political
correctness refers to anything that the powers-that-be have
determined to be unquestionable.  For example, arguing that
affirmative action hurts white people would be un-PC, because (so
the argument goes) affirmative action is good and anyone who
questions it is a bigot.
        However, this explanation does not always work.  Take Lani
Guinier, for example.  Her ideas on minority representation were
considered too far outside of what the powers-that-be deemed
acceptable for her to keep her nomination to the Justice
Department.  Did anyone at that time argue she was the victim of
political correctness?  No, which sheds a little light on what
kind of views are labeled politically correct.
        It seems like  "PC" basically means any view a liberal holds and
a conservative disagrees with.  Conveniently, there is little
distinction between liberal views that are good and those that
might be misguided - they're all lumped together under the ominous
PC label.  People tend to assume that universities are filled with
liberal professors who enforce a rigid PC orthodoxy (isn't it
interesting that people associate higher education and
intelligence with liberal politics?).  The truth is, there are
liberal profs here at the University of Illinois.  There are also
conservative profs.  The good ones won't force any agenda on their
students.  The bad ones... well, they're a challenge, regardless
of their politics.
        I guess my point is that this whole PC scare has been blown way
out of proportion.  The PC conspiracy exists more in the minds of
conservative columnists and commentators than it does on America's
campuses.  If people you once thought of as Oriental or black are
now referred to as Asian-American or African-American, so what?
Why should it cause you or Rush Limbaugh to have nightmares about
a liberal conspiracy?  Even if you do happen to disagree with
liberal politics, I can guarantee that the PC Police aren't coming
to drag you away anytime soon.
        Of course, it might be a good idea to remain suspicious of
people who smell like sandalwood incense - just in case.
[Reprinted with permission from the  08/16/93 edition of the Daily
Illini, a student newspaper at the University of Illinois that
does not receive funding from the Madison Center.]