President of NYU’s College Republicans Forced to Resign After Calling Barron Trump an ‘Oddity on Campus’

“Kaya Walker, the president of NYU’s College Republicans, was forced to resign after calling Barron Trump an oddity on campus. The resignation occurred days after Vanity Fair published an article that examined the college life of President Donald Trump’s 18-year-old son. ‘He’s sort of like an oddity on campus,’ Walker told the outlet in a story about Barron published on Wednesday, Feb. 12. ‘He goes to class, he goes home.’”

A casual reader of this article can easily discern that Walker was referring to the fact that Barron Trump not staying on campus was an oddity; she was not calling Barron Trump an oddity. Her forced resignation is an example of the pendulum principle.

When the pendulum swings far in one direction, it is inevitable that it will swing just as far in the opposite direction.

While I do not know every detail of the situation, I believe this serves as a significant warning: Do not mirror the bad behavior of those who have wronged us or those with whom we disagree. Here are some lessons and observations from this story:

Cancel Culture Is Wrong Even When Conservatives Do It

It is a bad and dangerous thing to “cancel” someone—or, in this case, force a resignation—when that person expresses an opinion, especially when there was no real controversy in the statement. It is better to do right than to win.

If you are a Republican at NYU outraged by these comments, your anger is misplaced. I wonder how much pressure these college Republicans have put on the liberal professors and administration. NYU is a hotbed of anti-American and anti-Conservative views.

This Is an Example of a Knee-Jerk Opinion

Apparently, these college Republicans put too much trust in a publication they do not trust. This controversy stemmed from a story published by Vanity Fair, a magazine that I would dare say none of these college Republicans would trust; yet, they took what was said and accomplished the magazine’s goal. What sad irony!

How often do Christians do the same thing? We make statements such as, “beware of the misinformation” about Trump or some other politician, then believe everything said about another Christian. How sad.

It is dangerous—whether as a Democrat or a Republican, Conservative or Liberal—to let others think for us.

I often remind our “Conservative” congregations that the Holy Spirit should determine our thinking, not a news organization or a political pundit.