Here is a little background on why I decided to start Progressive U, which
some consider to be a crazy undertaking.
In 1971, a few months before he was nominated by Richard Nixon as a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Lewis Powell sent a memo to the Director of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In the memo
(sometimes known as the Powell Manifesto) Powell
expressed his concern that America’s best and brightest young people were becoming increasingly liberal. Powell went on to outline a series of steps that would be required to reverse the trend toward liberalism and anti-business attitudes on university campuses – a trend that he felt had the potential to undermine the entire free enterprise system in the United States.
Over 30 years later, it is clear that Powell and his conservative colleagues have had wide-ranging impact on American business, media, and politics. Conservative think tanks such as the
Heritage Foundation, the
Cato Institute, the Manhattan
Institute, and others were founded in the 1970s, either directly or indirectly in response to Powell memo, and now operate with annual budgets in the $15 - 40M range. Several organizations aimed specifically at college students and professors, such as the
Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Leadership
Institute, and Collegiate Network were also founded or expanded during this period. Alumni from these student organizations include conservative author Dinesh D’Souza, Bush Administration chief strategy advisor Karl Rove, radio talk show hosts and journalists, and numerous conservative business leaders across the country.
To be sure, there is no shortage of progressive groups on today’s college campuses. However, these groups tend to have a narrow focus aimed at very specific issues, and as a result most young people graduate and enter the work force with only a vague idea of the vision and shared values of the progressive worldview.
We need to fight back, and create our own progressive infrastructure that will
both work toward solving problems in a progressive way, and also work to build
awareness and understanding of progressive views. To read more, see
this post.
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Just as think tanks have their ownspecific issues that they deal with, it is important for people to stand up for the things that they ar most passionate about. My causes are not anti-whatever-the-current debate-is-about; although I have my opinions on many things. But my standing up is more about using my education and whatever power I have to help others who don't have a strong voice;being a voice to people who are commonly ignored.
T. Hagan