Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Mao, Marx and More
Accuracy in Academia ^ | April 13, 2006 | Julia A. Seymour

Posted on 04/13/2006 8:34:10 AM PDT by JSedreporter

“The only reason why Mao Zedung is given the bad reputation he has is because of the bourgeois press and their racism toward the Chinese,” said Marlene Kowal’s professor on the first day of the history class, Contemporary China.

Kowal, a senior at Temple University in Pennsylvania, offered a number of examples of things frequently said in classrooms at Temple and presumably at other universities across the country when she spoke last week at the Academic Freedom conference in Washington, D.C.

In the same class, Kowal’s professor declared herself to be a Maoist and that the purpose of her teaching would be to prove Mao’s greatness, stated that in order to end sweatshop labor, capitalism must be boycotted, saying that China under Mao was “the most equal country in the world,” and laughed when a student shouted “I hate white people” and then ranted about how the American government is purposely giving people AIDS. According to Kowal, her professor did not try to interrupt the student, although she does cut off students with views opposing her own.

“In the last three years I spent at Temple University I have come by countless professors that have a built-in leftist interpretation in their course lectures. I have rarely encountered professors that have been non-partisan in their pursuit to facilitate a dialogue of a broad range of serious intellectual perspectives,” said Kowal.

It is Kowal’s belief that many Temple professors teach in a similar fashion to her Contemporary China professor—and she should know. As the president of the Students for Academic Freedom group at Temple University, students express their grievances to Kowal, especially since hearings on Academic Freedom were held at the school in January. The Temple chapter of SAF currently has 43 members, twice the number of members in January.

“I am in possession of about twenty written complaints from this year,” said Kowal.

Some of those complaints are as follows:

English class: “My professor used the [English] class to spread her own Marxist socialist ideology. She often demonized President Bush and Republicans in general, calling capitalism evil.”

Accounting class: “The professor found a way to manipulate his political ideas into the lessons…every day he not only disrespected the President but also anyone in favor of conservative views or the Republican party.”

English as a second language: An ESL student reported having to read the controversial anti-American book, The Eagle’s Shadow, and stated she had gotten the impression that the professor had been taking advantage of the students’ poor linguistic skills to preach his politics from the vantage point as head of the classroom.

Kowal firmly believes underreporting of classroom abuses and proselytizing occurs because of intimidation and fear, but also because “students do not even realize they are being indoctrinated.”

One student told Kowal, “The professors get to you when you are a vulnerable, ignorant freshman. They start this junk when you are right out of high school when you don’t know any better.”

Kowal also said that despite teach-ins that have been held weekly by history professor Ralph Young which have brought in state Representative Lawrence Curry, Ellen Schrecker and Joyce Lindorff of the Temple Association of University Professors (TAUP), not one speaker in favor of the Academic Bill of Rights or the foundational concept has been invited.

Megan Fitzgerald of the Center for Campus Free Speech, an opponent of the Academic Bill of Rights, visited Temple University classrooms to campaign against the ABOR, according to Kowal.

“No wonder why the students who have not found comfort in our student organization are not speaking up. No wonder why the administration is in denial of this problem. No wonder why the professors are still being hired based on their politics, teaching their classes as partisan politicians and are getting away with it,” Kowal said.

“And yes, Karl Marx is given a colossal time and consideration in the classroom in comparison to the almost unmentionable Adam Smith,” said Kowal referencing comments made by state Representative Dan B. Frankel expressing his doubt that Temple University is indoctrinating students on Marxism.

Marlene Kowal is a member of the Temple College Republicans, a member of Phi Alpha Theta, a National History Honor Society, and has interned at the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s Program on National Security Studies. She will graduate from Temple in January of 2007 with her BFA in Dance with Distinction in History.

Julia A. Seymour is a staff writer for Accuracy in Academia.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; US: Pennsylvania
KEYWORDS: academicfreedom; antibush; culturewars; donatetofr; education; educrats; indoctrination; liberalbias; maoism; marxism; pc; saf; templeuniv

1 posted on 04/13/2006 8:34:12 AM PDT by JSedreporter
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter; All

Julia, thanks for posting this. The website looks great. It's about time we got serious about fighting back. I know you'll find a lot of support here.


2 posted on 04/13/2006 8:44:16 AM PDT by sageb1 (This is the Final Crusade. There are only 2 sides. Pick one.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter

Tsk tsk.

Who would care about the murder and imprisonment of tens of millions of Chinese in the Forties, Fifties and Sixties? After all, they are only "little yellow people" and don't really count for anything, right?

After all, Mao's communist principles are *much* more important than any individuals who have to get a bullet in the back of the head because they don't sign on.

People are sooooo darn judgemental about Mao.


3 posted on 04/13/2006 8:44:51 AM PDT by rlmorel ("Innocence seldom utters outraged shrieks. Guilt does." Whittaker Chambers)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter

Good link, by the way. I have added it to my list to browse daily...:)


4 posted on 04/13/2006 8:47:51 AM PDT by rlmorel ("Innocence seldom utters outraged shrieks. Guilt does." Whittaker Chambers)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter

Mao, Marx and more.

Moe, Larry and Curly.


5 posted on 04/13/2006 8:50:09 AM PDT by Supernatural (When they come a wull staun ma groon, Staun ma groon al nae be afraid)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter
Yup, lets ignore the 100 million plus people who died under communist rule.

"Sure, a few people died here and there but it was all for the better good. Besides, China's communism wasn't really communism. And Mao was really a nice guy. Really." /sarc
6 posted on 04/13/2006 8:50:38 AM PDT by dhs12345
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter
They start this junk when you are right out of high school when you don’t know any better...

It starts far earlier than that.
7 posted on 04/13/2006 8:51:29 AM PDT by conservativeharleyguy ( Democrats: Over 60 million fooled daily!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Supernatural
Mao, Marx and more.

It should be Mao, Marx, and Michael Moore

8 posted on 04/13/2006 8:54:32 AM PDT by MaDeuce (Do it to them, before they do it to you! (MaDuce = M2HB .50 BMG))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: Supernatural
Mao used 12 year old virgins as playthings,

but remember, he only used them once.

A mass murderer and a pedophile

{also a communist, but that was his good point}.

9 posted on 04/13/2006 9:00:15 AM PDT by USS Alaska (Nuke the terrorist savages - In Honor of Standing Wolf)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter
I used to work with a Chinese woman who told me she that as a child she ate lots of pumpkins.

I was surprised, since I thought pumpkins were a N American vegetable, and I don't associate them with China. I told her this.

"Oh," she said, "I lived on my grandfather's farm. He grew many pumpkins! He grew more than anyone else in the district!" Then she paused a little. "They killed him for that. And then we moved to the city."

10 posted on 04/13/2006 9:06:22 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy (Never question Bruce Dickinson!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: USS Alaska

Oh, I'm well aware of who the commies are and what they did.

They were and are pure evil.


11 posted on 04/13/2006 9:09:53 AM PDT by Supernatural (When they come a wull staun ma groon, Staun ma groon al nae be afraid)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter
Unit 731
12 posted on 04/13/2006 9:17:14 AM PDT by Calpernia (Breederville.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter

It's really not hard to see why teachers tend to be leftists. First of all, under the current system, teachers are well compensated, but not made wealthy, or held in the esteem they feel they deserve. Secondly, the Marxists realize that the means to propogate their ideology is through teachers. Teachers take on a greater level of importance in the Marxist world.


13 posted on 04/13/2006 9:36:28 AM PDT by brownsfan (It's not a war on terror... it's a war with islam.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter

This quote is interesting: "China under Mao was “the most equal country in the world,”

I would agree to the extent that under Mao, anyone but Mao was subjected to a reign of terror that resulted in the death of 70 million persons.

I have read about 2/3 of the new book on Mao. Check it out it is super.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0679422714/qid=1144946436/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/104-4749934-6040703?s=books&v=glance&n=283155


14 posted on 04/13/2006 9:40:18 AM PDT by GeorgefromGeorgia
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter
HUNGRY GHOSTS

Mao's Secret Famine

http://www.amazon.com/

15 posted on 04/13/2006 9:54:36 AM PDT by Charlespg (Civilization and freedom are only worthy of those who defend or support defending It)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JSedreporter

Communist governments destroy their own people (Cambodia, Eritrea) and they are demonic in principal and in full.

The professors are cramming it down students throats now like Catholicism was crammed down Europe's throat, except the professors haven't burned anybody at the stake yet. Yet.


16 posted on 04/13/2006 10:49:58 AM PDT by RoadTest (The wicked love darkness; but God's people love the Light!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dhs12345

I actually heard a college student say this in class recently.


17 posted on 04/30/2006 8:32:13 PM PDT by Rakkasan1 (lead ,follow or get out of the majority.start with our borders.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson