Mob Rule in Missouri

It seems that Missouri is the state for mob rule. Last year, America witnessed a breakdown of order in Ferguson following the death of African American teenager Michael Brown. Even though the Justice Department exonerated Darren Wilson, the white police officer involved in the shooting of Brown, protesters still maintained the fiction that Brown was ruthlessly killed in a racist manner. They repeated the false mantra, "hands up, don't shoot," even though witnesses say that Brown never uttered those words. Instead, he attacked Wilson shortly after the officer asked Brown to move out of the middle of the street. Protesters also conveniently overlooked the video evidence showing Brown robbing a store minutes before his encounter with Wilson.

The Ferguson shooting created the "Black Lives Matter" movement which has been issuing demands to politicians across the country. The incident also created an untenable situation for Wilson at the Ferguson Police Department, where he was relieved of his duties. Today, he is unemployed and in hiding, even though he did nothing wrong. A few miles down the road from Ferguson another imaginary white racist is unemployed and may have to go into hiding even though he did nothing wrong. This week, Timothy Wolfe resigned his position as President of the University of Missouri system. His crime is that he is white and did not do enough to respond to the outrageous demands of black protesters, who claim that the university has become a racially hostile environment. The activists point to an incident where racial slurs were supposedly yelled from a passing vehicle. They also note that a swastika made of feces was drawn in a dormitory room. Finally, they say that Wolfe did not meet with protesters who were blocking his vehicle during the Homecoming parade. It is preposterous to tie Wolfe to any racist activity. He did not yell the slurs or draw the offensive symbol. While those incidents may involve true racism, they also could be hoaxes, as we have seen in many other cases. Also, he was criticized because he asked police officers to remove the protesters during the parade because they were blocking his vehicle. Since he did not act according to the wishes of protesters, Wolfe represents "white privilege," and, therefore, was sacrificed on the altar of political correctness.

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Initially, the protests created some controversy but they reached a new level of agitation when 30 black football players on the University of Missouri team decided to join forces with the activists. They vowed not to play in this weekend's game against Brigham Young University unless Wolfe resigned or was fired. After Gary Pinkel, the highly paid white football coach, sided with the players, it was all over for the President. He resigned the next day, surely under pressure from university leaders nervous about the football team forfeiting the game and having to pay a $1 million cancellation fee. So, now we know who is really valued at the University of Missouri. It is not the scholar, it is the football player. In fact, since the football team forced the President from his position, maybe they should take over all of the functions of running the school. Why does the university need a president when they have activists and football players who are making the major decisions? The activists prepared an eight part manifesto with a variety of demands, including the right to approve whoever is selected to replace Wolfe, the hiring of more minorities at the university and the mandate that “racial awareness and inclusion” curriculum be required for all students. Obviously, the activists are now experts in education as well. Who needs arts, sciences, and engineering with such a pressing demand for diversity training? By resigning, Wolfe created a very dangerous precedent. In just a few days, students at more than 100 colleges protested “racism” on their campuses leading to the resignation of more administrators and professors. In addition, football players at other schools will surely realize their financial power and start making demands. This will have repercussions all over the country. While Wolfe was not guilty of racism, he was guilty of displaying weakness. He should have said he was not resigning because he did nothing wrong. Then he should have withdrawn the scholarships of all of those who boycotted the game and fired the hapless coach. The season would have ended, but a great message would have been delivered to the protesters. Instead, the forces of political correctness won again and this sickness, a political bubonic plague, will continue to spread throughout the country.