Banned on Campus

(Cleveland, Ohio) There's an interesting controversy simmering at Case Western Reserve University between school officials and a campus protester. The protester, Kristopher Waller, 22, of Bay Village, has been banned from the campus as a result of a harassment complaint filed against him for behavior during an anti-war protest in March.

In a letter sent April 15, Clay Barnard, assistant vice president for student affairs, told Waller, "As the result of a harassment report filed on March 18, 2004, where you verbally assaulted a Case student during an anti-war protest in front of the Kelvin Smith Library, you are hereby persona non grata on the campus."

Well, the letter was immediately interpreted as an attack on the right of free speech and a new protest was organized. Accordingly, Waller and about two dozen students and supporters gathered and tried to enter the administrative offices in Adelbert Hall before being stopped by university security.

"I was outspoken while a member of the student body, but now that I am no longer paying tuition, they banned me from the campus," Waller said before the protest. "This whole country is turning into a police state with the Patriot Act and Homeland Security designed to shut down protesters."

There's nothing particularly unusual about this "protest on campus" story since it happens all the time. However, a couple unique aspects are worthy of mention.

One is that, about three months ago, Case Western Reserve University awarded the protagonist in the controversy, Kristopher Waller, baccalaureate degrees in both history and religion. Contrary to the general assumption that a degreed individual would go and become a productive addition to society, Kristopher Waller instead returned to his alma mater as a protest leader and member of the Revolutionary Communist Youth Brigade.

One has to wonder on what basis was Mr. Waller awarded his degree in history. Since any rational study of the history of the world would indicate that communism requires implementing a police state and murdering a significant percentage of the population. In fact, in the 20th century alone, communist genocide has been credited with killing at least 100 million people. It doesn't seem to make a lot sense for someone to become a communist after having studied history to the point of receiving a degree. It also doesn't make sense for a religion major to become a communist since a goal of communism is to eradicate religion.

All in all, there is something awry when an individual decides to adopt a genocidal political philosophy immediately after completing a four year curriculum at a well-respected university in the United States. Quite possibly it would be prudent for the administrators at Case Western Reserve University to take a hard look at what they're teaching in the history and religion departments.