- Target:
- VSU President William J. McKinney
- Region:
- United States of America
Dr. Ben Carson, conservative FOX commentator, rightwing presidential candidate, outrageous speaker, slated to speak at Valdosta State University on September 11. VSU is a public university. Dr. Carson is sponsored by VSU School of Business, South Georgia Medical Center, 100 Black Men of Valdosta, Farmers and Merchant Bank, and Southeastern Federal Credit Union. $43,000 was paid to him from VSU Foundation 501c3 money.
On August 1, Ben Carson took a major step in his bid for 2016 Republican presidential nomination, opening up a high dollar PAC for conservative candidates, and presumably himself, as well as hiring former defense attorney Terry Giles to head his presidential campaign committee (Giles represented Kenneth Lay, who was ultimately convicted on ten counts in the Enron scandal).
Numerous rightwing Tea Party politicians, including Governor Nathan Deal, have purchased tickets and tables for a private live event with Ben Carson, as well as individual time for "donations" and photo opportunities.
When we insisted that VSU needed to sponsor a progressive candidate in similar fashion, they balked, saying such a candidate would not "sell enough tickets."
IRS rules about direct or indirect support of political campaigns are clear. Please insist that Valdosta State University follow their own internal procedures regarding speakers and that they follow federal guidelines on 501c3 money and political campaigns.
Dear President William J. McKinney:
We, the undersigned, call on you to cancel the speaking engagement with Dr. Ben Carson, September 11, for the following reasons:
1. He is a presidential candidate for 2016; it is no longer a "rumor".
2. He holds no academic credentials pertinent to an Economics talk in VSU's business school;
3. Sponsorship of this event is most likely a violation of IRS rules regarding 501c3 money and institutions re: political campaigns;
4. VSU has not provided equal support for any candidate who offers a counter platform to Carson;
5. His anti-Obamacare political platform is the main reason Georgia Governor Deal is attending this travesty, because Carson's platform mirrors Governor Deal's;
6. His outrageous and toxic rhetoric causes a community safety concern, eg. he said the death of Michael Brown was because his mother did not teach him to respect authority and he praised Cliven Bundy and his militia when they trained their guns on law enforcement, saying the militia were patriots standing up for freedom from Nazi America;
7. He equates homosexuality with pedophilia and bestiality, and such speech is in direct violation of VSU's own policies regarding Safe Space on campus
8. His speaking engagements were cancelled at Emory University and Johns Hopkins University because faculty and students concluded that his speech violated the academic ideals of their respective universities;
9. Inviting someone whose toxic rhetoric is akin to that of Rush Limbaugh denigrates the stature of Valdosta State University and opens up this institution to public ridicule.
You can further help this campaign by sponsoring it
The Cancel Ben Carson at Valdosta State University petition to VSU President William J. McKinney was written by Leigh Touchton and is in the category Education at GoPetition.