Princeton’s ‘Inclusive Private Club’ Reverses Policy

In a Corner post published earlier this week titled “Princeton’s Nurseries,” I criticized a policy adopted at a Princeton University eating club called “Charter Club.” An undergraduate Charter member brought conservative professor Robert P. George in for a meal, prompting overly sensitive students to file complaints. In response, the club adopted a policy requiring that the leadership approve guests for mealtime hours who are not friends or family. Although the policy might have been facially neutral, I doubted it would have been enforced neutrally with respect to political ideology, given that it was instituted because of a conservative’s presence. I noted the irony that Charter made George an honorary member in 2012, and as recently as 2017, it sponsored a dinner with him as part of a fundraising initiative. I also emphasized that people — like the Charter students — who claim to support “inclusivity” want to exclude anyone who disagrees with them.

I obtained an email that was sent on Tuesday by Rodrigo Menezes, a Princeton alumnus and the chairman of the Board of Governors of Charter Club, which conveys that the board is intervening to reverse the policy. Now, “all dues-paying members may continue to bring guests without any preconditions.” The decision is admirable, but the provided justification utterly evades accountability.

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Abigail Anthony

Abigail Anthony is a staff writer at National Review.

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In a Corner post published earlier this week titled “Princeton’s Nurseries,” I criticized a policy adopted at a Princeton University eating club called “Charter Club.” An undergraduate Charter member brought conservative professor Robert P. George in for a meal, prompting overly sensitive students to file complaints. In response, the club adopted a policy requiring that the leadership approve guests for mealtime hours who are not friends or family. Although the policy might have been facially neutral, I doubted it would have been enforced neutrally with respect to political ideology, given that it was instituted because of a conservative’s presence. I noted the irony that Charter made George an honorary member in 2012, and as recently as 2017, it sponsored a dinner with him as part of a fundraising initiative. I also emphasized that people — like the Charter students — who claim to support “inclusivity” want to exclude anyone who disagrees with them.

I obtained an email that was sent on Tuesday by Rodrigo Menezes, a Princeton alumnus and the chairman of the Board of Governors of Charter Club, which conveys that the board is intervening to reverse the policy. Now, “all dues-paying members may continue to bring guests without any preconditions.” The decision is admirable, but the provided justification utterly evades accountability.