The Arizona State University community is expressing anger and embarrassment in response to ASU's decision not to award President Barack Obama an honorary degree when he gives the commencement speech there next month. An ASU spokesperson now confesses, "we blew it," and concedes that the university likely would have conferred the honorary degree, but once it became a controversy, ASU administrators were too worried about appearing insincere.
When the news hit last week that ASU would not honor Obama with a customary honorary degree when he addresses the graduating class, the Huffington Post asked for people with ties to ASU to email their reactions. A couple hundred members of the university's community (students, alumni, staff, and faculty) submitted their personal thoughts.
Nearly every email expressed shame over the decision made by their alma mater. One alumnus, Dr. Neil Francis, wrote from Thailand to say he will no longer wear his Arizona State University ball cap -- even halfway around the world. Several said that they did not believe the story when they first heard it: they thought the story was a satirical news piece or a holdover from April Fool's Day.
Many Huffington Post readers wrote in to say that they would be withholding donations. Some said they would even remove endowments from their wills. The detrimental effect that this debacle will almost certainly have on fundraising could not come at a worse time, since the state legislature has recently enacted major funding cuts.
Dianne Safford writes:
I have given to the school every year since graduation--and planned to bequeath money upon my death. All that has changed. In fact, I have asked for credits for money I gave to two scholarship programs just last month. I won't resume giving until [university President] Michael Crow resigns.
Bridget Quinsley says:
My husband earned his doctorate from ASU and has been making regular financial contributions throughout the years. We are both very upset that ASU is snubbing our President in this way. My husband has emailed the President of ASU to let him know that we will not be making any further financial contributions to the University and eliminate a legacy in our wills. We believe this was a politically motivated action and totally out of line.
Susan Trueblood, who also has two degrees from ASU, had a similar message for the university:
This decision has humiliated me personally and embarrassed the State of Arizona and the faculty and students of the university. It is shocking and actually absurd to say that the sitting President of the United States and a man who has authored two best sellers, been President of the Harvard Law Review and has broken a racial barrier that I never believed I would see in my lifetime, is not accomplished enough to receive an Honorary Degree when he speaks at the 2009 commencement. I will not donate to ASU until Michael Crow is gone. I will continue to donate to Arizona Higher Education but will shift my donations to the University of Arizona.
Among a couple hundred submissions to the Huffington Post, those in support of ASU's decision not to award the honorary degree were in the single digits -- and about half of those voiced conspiracy-related complaints about Obama.
Even Republicans wrote in to say that ASU should give Obama the honorary degree. The theme centers around fairness. Those who are not Obama supporters say that ASU should not have invited Obama to address the graduating class if they were not prepared to give him the traditional honorary degree. Some even said they disagree with the tradition of giving honorary degrees but argued that if the university gives them to anyone, then Obama must surely qualify.
Darlene Treese, who has three degrees from ASU (a bachelors and two masters) wrote:
From looking over the list of past recipients, it's apparent that "your rules have changed" and you have politicized the university into a laughing stock of true academia and belittled the efforts of your alumni. I am totally embarrassed to be affiliated with ASU and find after examining "your body of work" that all future support of ASU is - to use your words - "totally inappropriate".
Some questioned the motives of Saturday's announcement that ASU would honor Obama by renaming the ASU Advantage program, a scholarship for low income students, the President Barack Obama Scholars program. Carl Schuh, a doctoral candidate in the ASU Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, says renaming an existing scholarship program is good but not enough.
ASU and the state's other two universities are politically progressive, unlike Arizona itself. Unfortunately, once again, because of ASU's bureaucratic ineptitude, Arizona is perceived as racist and ignorant. It is the responsibility of ASU President Michael M. Crow to make a dramatic speech reversing what appears to be the university's stance on not honoring the President of the United States.
Although the ASU community is angry and embarrassed over the brouhaha, there is also a consensus that -- whether snub or snafu -- the incident will not affect Obama. Even so, students, staff, faculty, and parents want Obama to know that they honor his presidency. Quite a few alumni wrote to Huffington Post to say they are mailing copies of their diplomas to university President Michael Crow and asking him to give them to Obama. A local columnist reportedly heard the same. A few are emailing diplomas directly to the White House. According to well connected student politicos at ASU, this is not a concerted effort, but rather independent activity on behalf of a large number of like-minded individuals.
ASU now says they have not yet made a decision whether to confer an honorary degree on Obama, but he may receive a diploma (or several) when he gives the commencement address at ASU regardless -- the diplomas will just have other people's names on them.
Subject: Fwd: Senior Health care
Let the old folks die, don't waste money on treatment, let's run a
little lethal injection thru the veins of D.C. Most of you know by now that the Senate version (at least) of the "stimulus" bill includes provisions for extensive rationing of health care for
senior citizens. The author of this part of the bill, former senator and tax evader, Tom Daschle was credited today by Bloomberg with the
following statement. Bloomberg: "Daschle says health-care reform "will not be
pain free. Seniors should be more accepting of the conditions that come
with age instead of treating them." If this does not sufficiently raise your ire, just remember that
Senators and Congressmen have their own healthcare plan that is first dollar
or very low co-pay which they are guaranteed the remainder of their lives and
are not subject to this new law if it passes. Please use the power of the Internet to get this message out. Talk it up at the grassroots level. We have an election coming up in one year and
nine months. We have the ability to address and reverse the dangerous direction the Obama administration and it allies have begun and in the interim, we can make their lives miserable. Let's do it! If you disagree, don't do anything
Hold your "Clenched Fists" high ASU, and chant along with Rush, "We hope America Fails"!
Bestowing an honorary degree for President Obama should be based on what he has already accomplished, even prior to being elected POTUS!
If he was not good enough to merit the same honorary degree other commencement speakers have merited then he should never have been asked to speak in the first place!
As too often happens with our leaders, they let us down.
Your unstated point is well-taken, though: Arizona would be better off if Phoenix were as blue as Tucson.
And my beautiful neighborhood might be less creepy...
In August 2007, Sept 2007, President Crowe even hosted a fundraiser for McCain and John Kyle at his university home, which is owned by ASU and the state of Arizona, which is a big no no, since as a state employee and state property, you cannot hold fundraisers.
Most of the Board of Regent are big donors to the RNC, and Freedom Work (the Dick Armey franchise and tea bagger funders).
According to press reports, the ASU student govt invited Obama (which all student gov do) and he chose ASU out of the bunch...it is the administration that is doing all of this, because they are big time Republicans, and with a Republican governor, it won't be investigated.
As a former ASU student leader, we are working on getting a website up and the documentation that we have found (in matter of fact, my girlfriend has one of the invitations for the John Kyle party)
The website should be up soon...www.asuagainstobama.com
Cheers
I believe you will be shut down based on stories from others who have tried to do the same. Good luck.
Being sincerely sorry that their president did something stupid is nothing to be ashamed of. They can't appear any worse than they already do.
Maybe this incident will cause Arizonans to vote him out in the next election. That's what is needed!
Thanks for the onfo compogeek!
He's no silver spooned legacy child or bought and paid for sycophant of the wealthy which orchestrated the now burst trickle down balloon.
Our current issue is whether or not he and our hopes for change will be overwhelmed by the haters who despise his skin color and his achievements.
ASU made a polarizing choice in their series of statements about Obama.
ASU is forever the state and university that embraced then spurned The President.
On the other hand - no one should be unfairly discriminated against, either. If ASU thought the first Black Governor of Virginia deserved a degree, how much more the first Black President!
Yes, we SHOULD look forward to the day it doesn't matter - but until that day, we should NOT ignore this kind of insult.
However, if he resigns before President Obama speaks at the Commencement, this presents a possible embarrassing situation for th POTUS. He should not be put in that position, but ineptitude has its consequences and that's why Michael Crow should "resign" effective say about July 2009. It was a dumb and insulting decision and people should not be in these positions, collecting a comfortable salary and benefits, making large dumb decisions.
By invitation President Obama arrives to address the graduating class (I think I know what a Commencement address is!)
Now pretend that the president (small p) of ASU, Michael Crow, has just resigned, because he made a complete hash of the invitation by his ineptitude. Honestly, how comfortable do you think that whole thing would be? I'm quite sure that President Obama would not want to be the person in the middle of this. Can't you get the picture?
It has nothing to do with "talking" to Crow. Jeesh, think outside the square!