Texas A&M University: Traditions in Jeopardy

Following the conclusion of World War II, every state and several territories received a replica of the Liberty Bell. Most of the state governments adorned the bell upon their capitol buildings as to remember the brave souls who sacrificed for their nation. However, Texas Governor Allan Shivers bestowed the bell upon none other than Texas A&M University. His reasoning? "No one suffered more than the Aggies, so we will give it to them," he explained.

Most visitors to the campus will hear this tale if they take an official tour. To most, it's a respectful monument to the men who gave their lives in WWII. While this is certainly true, there seems to be an underlying meaning that seems to have been lost upon the current generation of Aggies. This historic university, unequaled in its reverence for its traditions, is perhaps the last great hope for the future generations of not only the state of Texas, but for the Republic itself. 

It seems only natural that Texas A&M should inherently be one of the few centers of higher learning that speaks for the cause of liberty. With our respect for the past and history with the military institutions, surely the Aggies, one of the largest student bodies in the nation, would produce at least a few notable conservatives and libertarians. Yet, as I walk the halls of the Memorial Student Center, a monument in and of itself, the vast majority of political groups I see have things like "Amnesty International" or "Defend DACA" inscribed on their tables. Even outside, occasionally I can see socialist groups post tiny fliers on the light-poles late at night. The administration seems to only promote activism for immigrant students or members of the LGBT community, judging by the university emails I receive. Several times last semester, I heard rumors of students protesting the statue of Lawrence Sullivan Ross, although as soon as I got wind of them, the protests seemed to dissipate before I could witness them. 

That's not to say there isn't any conservative activity on campus. Every so often, I'll see messages by Pro-Life Aggies on the sidewalk, and Turning Point USA will put out a table about once a week. However, it's clear that the prevailing culture on campus seems to be the same one that prevails on nearly every campus: that of liberal progressivism. This clearly shocked a politically-inclined freshman like myself. 

All throughout Fish Camp, we were told about how much the past matters to the University, that there were certain traditions that you were told to not disregard. Yes, we obviously still do the yells at the football games (which are by far the most exciting experiences at this school, to be clear, even with a mediocre team), and we don't walk on the grass around the MSC. We still go to Silver Taps, and we'll put pennies on Sully (besides the aforementioned protesters, of course). But it seems to me that most of the current students engage in these traditions simply because that's what we're expected to do. We don't actually reflect on why these traditions are so special, or why we care about them so much. We don't really think about the values on which this institution was founded, because if we did, there would be hundreds of students at the meetings of the various conservative groups on campus.

Think about it. If the student body actually stopped to think about the heroic sacrifices that we claim to remember in the MSC, especially those of our former students, don't you think they'd be enraged at the utter lack of disrespect these brave men get in modern culture? I'd argue that most of academia, especially in liberal arts, would brand most of these conflicts as "imperialist" or "resource-driven." If we actually cared about the great strides that President Rudder made in his term to make Texas A&M what it is today, we'd be up in arms that a professor making incredibly racist comments is still employed by the administration (there is clearly a double standard concerning free speech on campus between Dr. Curry and the admittedly vile Richard Spencer). It is evident that the rural, individualist, resourceful values that this University was founded upon, much like this Republic, are being falsely admired by those in positions in power, but not really respected.

I'm not trying to say that we need to put up a statue of Ronald Reagan or former student Rick Perry on campus (I'd actually advise against doing the latter). I'm not saying that all liberal professors need to be fired. Heck, I'm not even advocating for more student involvement in the conservative groups on campus, although it wouldn't hurt. The point I'm trying to make is that we, the Aggies, have a clear choice to make. Do we make the choice to at least examine the standards and history that make Texas A&M so unique and so special, or do we continue to halfheartedly act as if we appreciate the traditions at football games and continue our descent into conformity?