No Change for CU in Military Recruiting

Despite a recent setback for proponents of on-campus military recruitment, Columbia won’t be closing its gates to recruiters anytime soon.

Late last November, the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the Solomon Amendment, a federal law that supports the military’s right to recruit on college campuses. But the Justice Department is expected to appeal, and Columbia has no immediate plans to bar military recruiters.

In 2002, the Columbia Law School allowed military recruiting on its campus when the federal government threatened to cut off most of its funding to Columbia. At the time, University President Lee Bollinger issued a statement saying, “With great regret, I have authorized the General Counsel of the University to inform the United States Air Force that our Law School has agreed not to enforce its non-discrimination policy against military recruiters.”

Columbia University’s Statement of Nondiscriminatory Policies states, “University policies protect against discrimination and harassment on the basis of race, color, gender, religion, national and ethnic origin, age, citizenship, disability, sexual orientation, and marital status.”

Many colleges and universities, Columbia included, object to the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, which prohibits openly gay men and women from serving in the armed forces. These schools have non-discrimination policies that protect homosexuals from discrimination and have used the policies in the past to justify barring recruiters.

Under the Solomon Amendment, if a university enforces its non-discrimination policy against military recruiters, the government can withhold the university’s federal funding.

In the November ruling, the court stated that the Amendment, by forcing universities to accept discriminatory practices on campus, conflicted with their constitutional right to free speech. The court was particularly concerned with the impression the Amendment gave law school students, who are primarily charged with upholding the Constitution.

“The Solomon Amendment requires law schools to express a message that is incompatible with their educational objectives,” the court’s decision stated.

One of the three judges on the court, Ruggero John Aldisert, issued a dissenting opinion, in which he wrote, “We cannot conclude that the mere presence of a uniformed military recruiter permits or compels the inference that a law school’s anti-discrimination policy is violated.” The United States Justice Department also issued a statement asserting that the Solomon Amendment is constitutional.

The issue of military presence on college campuses also drew attention earlier this year when the U.S. House of Representatives ratified the ROTC and Military Recruiter Equal Access to Campus Act of 2004. The bill was intended to broaden the scope of the Solomon Amendment, but it was not signed into law before the November court ruling.

Even so, the Act generated some controversy at Columbia. Members of the Columbia Queer Alliance, Everyone Allied Against Homophobia, and Columbia University Concerned Students of Color spoke out against perceived homophobic and racist military recruitment practices.

The new ruling has given Yi-sheng Ng, CC ’05 and President of the Columbia Queer Alliance, cause for hope that the military’s presence will be banned from campus. While he acknowledges that military recruiting is a “contentious issue,” his own opinions on the matter are clear.

“I think that the University has lost much of its revolutionary glory from the 1960s,” he said. “I’m very glad that we are still able to claim that right ... to keep this destructive, discriminatory presence off campus.”

But so far, that right has yet to be exercised. Columbia’s administration expects the decision to be appealed and is not taking action, according to Katie Moore, associate director of Public Affairs.

While many Columbia students have expressed dissatisfaction with military recruiting on campus, some believe that a greater military presence would be beneficial. Sean Wilkes, CC ’06, chairman of Columbia Advocates for Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, aims to bring a ROTC program back to Columbia for the first time since 1968. The establishment of a ROTC program has often been discussed in connection with military recruiters on campus. At present, no ROTC program is offered on campus, but Columbia students may participate through Fordham University.

As part of his commitment to broadening opportunities in the military for Columbia students, Wilkes agrees with the Solomon Amendment. While he concedes that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” does indeed violate Columbia’s anti-discrimination policy, he believes that the benefits of military programs on campus outweigh the drawbacks. “We believe that it’s more important for students to have the opportunity to join the military and receive training,” he said.