In today’s Martin Center article, the Center’s president, Jenna Robinson, explains why she (and all of us) supports Freedom Conservatism’s Statement of Principles.
She writes:
Last year, I signed Freedom Conservatism’s “Statement of Principles,” a call to “apply the timeless principles of liberty to the challenges of the 21st century.” I did so primarily because I believe that individual liberty is essential to human flourishing, but also because I believe these principles can inform my work at the Martin Center to renew and fulfill the promise of higher education — in North Carolina and beyond.
Individual liberty is indeed the key to human flourishing. That is the big thing that “progressives” don’t or won’t grasp. All of their many plans for a controlled society will lead to far less flourishing than a society of free individuals. Their plans lead to strife and suffering.
With respect to our focus on higher education, Robinson continues, “A commitment to liberty in higher education means a commitment to freedom of expression and conscience, academic freedom, viewpoint diversity, and a curriculum that prepares students to be future guardians of the liberties and institutions that have shaped our country. I also believe in the pursuit of happiness. Universities should prepare students to thrive, not just in their chosen careers but also as citizens and human beings, cultivating knowledge and wisdom as well as useful skills.”
Higher education in the U.S, has been floundering because we have drifted so far away from our principles, allowing institutions to be used as platforms for activism that hardly even pay lip service to educational standards any longer — such as the wrongfulness of plagiarism.
Read the whole thing.