It's not easy being a Republican at Brown, but a sense of humor helps. That might be why Professor of Economics George Borts responded to a Herald inquiry about conservatives on campus with his own question: "Do you have a microscope?"
You may have to look hard to find them, but Republicans do exist at Brown.
The College Republicans is certainly not the largest or highest profile group on campus. Though the organization has a mailing list of over 300 students, President Evan Pettyjohn '06 said only 25 to 30 of those come to meetings, and only 10 or so come regularly. But Pettyjohn suspects there are a lot of "closet conservatives" at Brown.
Pettyjohn said conservatives get various reactions from the University community. There are plenty of students who are either curious or accepting, he said, but "other people write us off as bigots or idiots." He added, "They assume there is no reasoned defense of conservative opinions."
This happens because "they have never heard them," said Zack Drew '07, former vice president of the College Republicans.
Brown can be an ideological bubble for some, Pettyjohn said. "If you don't make a concerted effort here - if you are a Democrat or a liberal - to find that opposition," you are not going to find it, he said.
Pettyjohn is passionate about the belief that liberals are doing themselves a "disservice," as he says 50 percent of America is conservative and liberal students are bound to encounter conservative ideas in the world beyond College Hill.
John Tomasi, associate professor of political science, said some people think the reason universities are so liberal is because "the Right is wrong and the Left is correct ... and universities track the truth." He added, "The most polite word I can think of" to describe that argument is "implausible."
Yet not all Brown students prefer a homogeneous environment. Tomasi said students' intellectual curiosity often triumphs over their existing ideas, and they explore other political viewpoints. "Brown students, in my experience, are incredibly eager to learn about political ideas that they may not necessarily defend themselves," he said. He added, "The Right is so unexamined at Brown that it has become cool to consider."
Pettyjohn seems to fit Tomasi's description. He came to Brown in part because of its liberal reputation. He said he did not want to assume his ideas were entirely correct and knew challenges could prove some views wrong while strengthening others.
The College Republicans primarily seek to "spread conservative ideals and increase dialogue on campus," Pettyjohn said. But are they succeeding?
Borts said he sees conservatism on campus "only when I look in the mirror."
There used to be a greater conservative presence on campus, Borts said, but on-campus "conservatism died out in the '60s (due to) generational change in the faculty and administration and external current events that were deeply disturbing," including the Vietnam War.
"It always changes," Borts said of political currents on campus, adding that he wouldn't be surprised if "a bunch of kids running around naked in Sayles Hall" inspires a conservative reaction.
The College Republicans was resurrected just five years ago, after becoming "pretty much nonexistent" in the late 1990s. This semester, the group is "getting better organized and stronger," Pettyjohn said.
"In the last year, we have gained support," according to Drew, who cited President Ruth Simmons' encouragement of intellectual diversity and initiatives such as the Kaleidoscope lecture fund.
The creation of the Kaleidoscope Fund, established to bring a diversity of viewpoints to campus, was "partially our influence," Drew said. The Republicans hopes to bring Rich Lowry, editor of National Review, to campus this semester, though members fear the fund will decline the request because it partially funded a lecture sponsored by The Herald earlier this month by Jay Nordlinger, managing editor of National Review. Drew said the idea of Nordlinger and Lowry redundant is like saying Howard Dean, Noam Chomsky and the Reverend Jesse Jackson all delivered the same message when they came to campus.
In general, though, Pettyjohn said the College Republicans' relations with the administration were "great last year," which he suspects was partially due to "pressure from conservative alums." He called the Kaleidoscope Fund a "band-aid solution," arguing, "one lecture is not the same as a balanced atmosphere." Tomasi agreed that the Kaleidoscope Fund is an inadequate solution to the problem of intellectual diversity on campus.
Drew said it is "hard to counteract" the many endowed lecture series that bring "liberally minded people" to campus. But he expressed appreciation for Simmons, saying, "I think she believes in intellectual diversity."
In the end, Pettyjohn said, the Republicans "don't feel like we are smothered." "We speak up in class. ... We try to do as much as we can, and we are going to be doing more." This spring, the Republicans will face the Brown Democrats in a debate over government wiretapping. As for the controversy that defending their positions creates, Drew said, "that's the best part."
In response to Borts' allegation that the on-campus conservative presence is microscopic, Tomasi pointed out another student group - "a fast-moving amoeba worth watching, the Students for Liberty are a group that is ... interested in the intellectual underpinnings of conservatism." In addition, Tomasi's own Political Theory Project attempts to broaden political debate on campus.
"The range of ideologies that are discussed at a great university should reflect the range of ideologies throughout the country," he said. If this range is only as great as the range of ideologies discussed at Harvard, Yale and Princeton universities, Brown is failing its undergraduates in the same way they are, Tomasi added.
Stephen Dewey, president of the Harvard Republican Club, said his organization has roughly 1,000 members, 40 of whom attend regular meetings. Of the conservative presence at Harvard, Dewey wrote in an e-mail to The Herald, "Republicans hold our own on campus. We make a substantial contribution to campus debate, and have some influence over student opinion."
The Brown College Republicans are currently launching a capital campaign to solicit funding from alums, Drew said. Pettyjohn said the goal of the campaign is to make sure the group still exists in 10 years so that he and Drew can donate to it. "The failure of other groups has been that they didn't last," he said. With a laugh, he said, "we're John the Baptist - the messiah is yet to come."
