Young Conservatives protest Baylor department’s sponsorship of illegal immigrant promoting DREAM Act
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 30, 2011
Contact: Kathryn Richardson, Media Relations Officer
Mobile: 425-891-2319
Email: [email protected]
*Chapter Chairman’s note: This release corrects the previous version. Quoted material has been updated for accuracy. Media file provided for authentication.*
Waco, TX – On Thursday, November 10th, Baylor University’s Student Senate is set to vote on a bill calling on University officials to “cease promotion and/or sponsorship of any events or guest speakers which advocate violent rebellion and illegal resistance to the laws of the state and nation or the rules of the University.”
The bill, authored by senior Daniel Cervera, is in response to a Hispanic Civil Rights Forum. The event largely served to promote the DREAM Act, a controversial legislative proposal which would grant amnesty to students whose families immigrated into the United States illegally. The event was moderated by Dr. Elizabeth Palacios, Baylor’s Dean for Student Development, and sponsored by the university’s Department of Multicultural Affairs.
Jose Magana, a Baylor Law student, spoke as one of the panelists, and declared himself as “undocumented.”
At the lecture, Magana encouraged civil disobedience: “And what they [a lot of DREAM Act activists] do — and y’all might have heard of this — is they do a lot of civil disobedience,” Magaña said as a panelist at the forum. “So they’ll have undocumented students do sit-ins and block traffic and go into senators’ offices and refuse to leave, and then they’ll get arrested; and all that serves to drum up attention and kind of, uh… keep the spotlight longer.” (.mp3)
“It’s one thing when individuals fail to meet a legal standard. But it’s unconscionable that Baylor, a Christian institution, would offer a speaking platform to someone advocating undermining U.S. laws,” said Cervera, chairman of the Baylor Young Conservatives of Texas and first-generation American.
Among those isolated for criticism in panelist remarks (.docx) included Governor Rick Perry, U.S. Senator John Cornyn, local law enforcement, the Republican Party conservatives, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and “the far right”. Baylor University’s student policy handbook states that in selection of guest speakers, “Particular concern should be taken that the University not be politicized.”
Gabriela Garrett, a senior and attendee of the event, noted “When Dr. Palacios thanked the panelists for coming, she mentioned that ‘we need to bring you all back again and have more of these forums,'”
Cervera says some action from the Baylor community is necessary to address the political agendas being pushed on campus and to ensure Baylor remains a peaceful and orderly place to learn. “It’s important that students, parents, and alumni inquire into what causes and methods are being promoted by Baylor.”
Daniel Cervera serves as State Director of Chapter Development for the Young Conservatives of Texas. His family descends from the Mexican state of Sinaloa, home of what U.S. law enforcement officials describe as the largest and most violent drug cartel in Mexico.
Young Conservatives of Texas has been promoting conservatism at universities across the Lone Star State for over three decades. The state’s most active political youth organization, YCT is composed of hundreds of members and alumni who participate in the full spectrum of politics. YCT issues the most respected ratings of the Texas legislature and is the only conservative group to have done so without interruption over the past 19 legislative sessions. To learn more about YCT, their ratings, or for information on joining, please visit yct.org.
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