Conservative student speaks against vulgar comments

Written By Logan Dubil, For The Globe

According to Point Park’s website, one of its most important values is to “foster a community of mutual respect and diversity.” Since moving in, I have been cursed out and attacked with vulgar statements on my door due to a difference in opinion. If anything, I have experienced the opposite of what Point Park has intended. 

I am a conservative. That’s right. I attend a liberal arts college as a conservative. I knew that coming to this specific university would be a major adjustment, but leaving my dorm to find phrases such as “you are racist” and “you can’t have an opinion” written on my whiteboard is not helping expedite the process. I came here to move away from home and to take advantage of the opportunities Pittsburgh has to offer, not for people to make assumptions about me based on the political party I affiliate with.  

Ever since President Donald J. Trump won the 2016 election, politics have been a major interest of mine. I went from not watching the news to watching it non-stop, and from not having opinions to having nothing but opinions. Taking advantage of my high school paper, “The Knight Crier,” I utilized the idea of an editorial to speak what was on my mind. As expected, I received both positive and negative responses. The positive comments encouraged me to continue writing. The negative comments encouraged me to focus my writing on providing a clear view of my side of the argument, whether the topic was about abortion, the electoral college, the wall at the border, etc. After months of gaining experience and exposure, politics was all I cared about.  

Coming into a liberal college in a liberal city, I knew my opinion would not be popular, but it is my right to express my views, so that is exactly what I did – well, not exactly. These vulgar statements all started with a simple concept – the poll. 

As a going away gift, my mom gave me these whiteboards that stick to basically anything. I decided to break the ice and put one on my door, allowing daily polls to be posted, giving others the chance to vote. The polls started out simple with questions like “what’s your favorite jolly rancher flavor” and “Monsters Inc. or Incredibles.” Being the political junkie I am, I realized that the election is coming up soon, providing me the perfect platform to make my polls political. 

I shifted from Pixar polls to political polls, which caused others to shift their responses from respectful to rude. Want to know what makes this situation even better?  I never once expressed my opinion while writing these polls, making each negative comment an assumption.  

As a firm believer in our Constitution, I support the First Amendment (Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances). Therefore, I understand that others have and can have different opinions than me, but cursing someone out is no way to solve a conflict.

If these people wanted to discuss or debate a specific issue, I would have gladly done so, but instead they wrote false accusations and ran away. These comments didn’t hurt my feelings, since I know they are false, but it does make me fear the way our country is heading. Due to the number of hours I put into watching the news and reading articles, I am aware of what is going on out there. People have been assaulted for wearing MAGA hats. Conservative college students’ grades are dropped because of most universities’ liberal agendas. It makes me wonder…is speaking my opinion making me a political activist or a target?  

From what I have seen so far, Point Park University showcases a variety of people from race to ethnicity to sexual orientation, which is great. Why am I not being accepted due to my political beliefs, though? I am sure over time people will learn to get to know someone before they assume certain things. Yes, I am a conservative, but that’s all I am. I will respect your opinions; I just request the same treatment in return.