Day By Day© by Chris Muir.

May 24, 2006

Commencement Speeches: No Longer Inspirational

It used to be that college commencement speakers would give speeches designed to inspire and congratulate the students who just completed an important part of their lives.

Now, it seems, commencement speakers have decided to use the podium as a pulpit for their own political beliefs, taking advantage of a captive audience to further a particular agenda.

There have been plenty of examples in the news of late, but this is probably one that won't be in your peripheral because the university is not a high profile one. Catherine Crier, former lawyer and judge who hosts Catherine Crier Live on Court TV, gave the commencement address at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, Connecticut.

My alma mater.

I didn't attend my own commencement because I graduated mid-year, and decided not to bother walking down the aisle in the spring. If Crier is the kind of speaker that WCSU is in the habit of engaging, I can see I didn't miss much.

Crier thought her speech was so important that she posted it on HuffPo. You can read it in its entirety if you wish to know how Crier took what is supposed to be a happy, uplifting occasion to criticize the Bush administration and our presence in Iraq. (Hey, if the usual ploys don't work, use that captive audience to advantage!)

It seems that some in the audience didn't take kindly to Crier's hijacking the graduation.

Western Connecticut State University graduate Krista M. Lindstedt wants an apology from commencement speaker Catherine Crier, who turned Sunday's graduation ceremony into "more of a political rally than a commencement speech that should be positive, motivational and happy."

"Overall she offended a lot of people," said Lindstedt, 33, of Crier's speech, which lasted at least 20 minutes. "It was completely, completely inappropriate. It was a slap in the face to veterans" — and soldiers like herself.

Linstedt didn't just sit mum. She stood up and told Crier what she thought.

"I said this is wrong. It is not about you, about politics. It is about graduation. This is an insult to graduates and guests who have family members over there (in Iraq). They didn't come to sit at a political rally."

"I did not plan on that happening," she said. "It was not about our moment that we were living. It was not about our achievements, expectations and moving forward, but a slam on the (Bush) administration."

According to the News Times article quoted above, Crier was not surprised by the reaction of the crowd.

"I know that these issues are very sensitive issues on all sides of the fence, all sides of the debate," said Crier. "I wasn't completely surprised (at the protest). I didn't walk away upset because it wasn't perfect.

"In an ideal world," she said, "it be great if you could sort of propose different points of view, engaging in ideas, engaging in healthy debate."

Newsflash: a commencement speech is not healthy debate. It's one person in front of a crowd of people, speaking without having to answer questions regarding what is said. It's also a day to honor graduates and inspire them, not a day to rail against an administration whose policies one does not agree with.

This bit, from Crier's post on HuffPo, is particularly telling of her attitude toward different points of view:

I gave a commencement speech this morning at Western Connecticut State University. Skipping the usual themes, I addressed political concerns. My remarks inspired a number of hecklers, parents and students alike, who tried to boo me from the podium. My thanks to the many people who applauded, and those brave young graduates who stepped out of line when receiving their diplomas to shake my hand.

Stepping out of line to shake her hand was brave? Puh-leeze. How about Linstedt, who stood up in the middle of a large crowd to tell Crier she thought the speech was inappropriate in such a setting? One would think that Crier, a progressive thinker, would applaud Linstedt's move, even if she didn't agree with the sentiment behind it.

Silly me.

Catherine Crier motivates from the left