In yet another demonstration of cravenness, Columbia University has caved in to a water-and-Gatorade a hunger strike by what in the end amounted to two students. Fulfilling their demands, mainly the expansion of the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the restructuring of Columbia College’s core curriculum to accommodate more courses on non-European civilizations, could cost the institution at least $50 million.
John Leo remarks that this latest capitulation by the university president “teaches future strikers how easy it is to get concessions from Columbia … Bollinger’s decision to buy off the strikers may lead to more protesters and larger demands.”
It is likely that this sorry episode will lead to less exposure of students to invaluable classics within the core curriculum. I wonder if the administration would have backed down equally ignominiously in face of a Gatorade protest by students demanding a strengthening of core courses on Western civilization?