Few Colleges Invite Conservative Commencement Speakers for 2013

The Young America’s Foundation conducted its annual review of commencement speakers at the nation’s top universities and once again found that very few conservative speakers were invited to give graduates their traditional send-off into the “real” word.

In what it called a “star-studded example of imbalance,” YAF found that of the nation’s top 25 colleges, only two had decidedly conservative speakers taking the podium; out of the full list of the 100 schools examined, only 17 conservatives received speaking slots. On the other hand, 62 schools had invited decidedly liberal speakers to give commencement speeches.

Invited to speak are such liberals as Oprah Winfrey; Barack Obama and Joe Biden; Nancy Pelosi; U.S. Rep. John Lewis; Clinton supporter and poet Toni Morrison; Newark, NJ Mayor Cory Booker; New York Times columnist Nick Kristof; former EPA head Lisa Jackson, and many more.

“While these liberals indoctrinate college students, conservative voices are being silenced,” the YAF website says. “Neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Carson, who has risen to national fame for his criticism of this administration’s leftist policies, was banned from speaking at Johns Hopkins University by an online petition from liberal students.”

“It goes to show you how administrators are unwilling to reach out and provide an alternative viewpoint,” YAF’s Adam Tragone told Fox News. “There’s a plethora–a deluge–of liberals compared to conservatives on this year’s list.”

In a statement, YAF President Ron Robinson said, “As tuition and student loan debt grow at historic rates, what are students getting for their money? An education from leftist professors that-combined with the Obama administration’s policies-has left 53 percent of recent grads unemployed or underemployed.” He claimed, “These commencement speakers are just the icing on higher education’s indoctrination cake.”

President Obama himself is scheduled to give three commencement speeches this year; he’s already given one of them.

On May 5, President Obama warned students at Ohio State University to “reject” those voices that warn against the growth of intrusive, big government.

Unfortunately, you’ve grown up hearing voices that incessantly warn of government as nothing more than some separate, sinister entity that’s at the root of all our problems. Some of these same voices also do their best to gum up the works. They’ll warn that tyranny always lurking just around the corner. You should reject these voices.

Only a week later, Obama’s IRS admitted that it was using its power to intimidate conservatives, while his Department of Justice admitted it had seized the home and business phone records of 100 Associated Press reporters in a wide ranging investigation into the AP’s reportage.