Undeniably, Northern California is an ideologically liberal place. Conser­vatives are certainly in the minority. A survey done several years back by the Stanford College Republicans found that only 20 percent of Stanford stu­dents claim to be conservative. A more recent study, published by the Palo Alto Weekly in February 2005, showed that there are 7.6 Democrats in the Stanford faculty for every Republican. Retaining and fighting for conservative ideals can be a challenge. Despite the enormous political inequity, ambi­tious and concerned conservatives can both thrive and find their place on the farm.

Although I am just completing my first year as an undergraduate student at Stanford, I have already experienced many of the ups and downs of campus political life. I can still remember my days of “closet conservatism.” At first, few other students knew that I aligned myself on the right side of the political spectrum. The overwhelm­ing liberal atmosphere and my fear of being socially ostracized warranted total confidentiality. I even turned-off the “political views” section of my facebook profile in an effort to evade fanatic facebook stalkers.

Thankfully, I had my day of enlight­enment. I can still remember it vividly. I believe I said something politically revealing in IHUM section. Immedi­ately thereafter, a whisper comes from behind me. My classmate asks me, “Are you one of us?” I respond, “who?” He answers: “conservatives.” I divulged my deep secret, and hence began my adventure in campus politics.

I soon learned that there are more conservatives on campus than I origi­nally thought. At least two more turned up in that same IHUM section and a significant number in my own dorm—including the Editor-in-Chief of The Stanford Review. People began to sympathize with my political ideas and viewpoints. More importantly, they encouraged me to actively propagate my ideology and challenge the beliefs of others. I began to enjoy a whole new aspect of university life.

My new motivation to actively engage in Stanford’s political scene later crystallized into several articles for The Review and an ASSU Senate bid. One of the later articles, released right before the election, detailed an investigation I conducted on the Black Student Union’s disproportionate representation in the ASSU and the amount of funding they receive from General Fees. The article caused a huge political backslash from the black com­munity and the liberal establishment on campus. Large numbers of e-mails circulated asking students to not vote for me in the coming election and The Stanford Daily subsequently published a staff editorial entitled, “Conservatives deserve a better paper than The Review.” I ended-up finishing last in the election and even lost the endorsement of the Stanford College Republicans.

Race politics, I quickly learned, is not an issue most university students are willing to discuss. Unlike most power establishments, students are afraid to challenge the legitimacy of race-orient­ed groups. Deplorably, many people dismissed the facts that I presented. Students claimed that the article was of biased, sensationalized, and even implicitly racist. Although I chal­lenged objectors to reveal specific facts that bothered them, the few e-mails I received only took issue with the way in which I presented facts. In short, I was greatly distressed with the state of intellectual diversity at Stanford. Race, in my view, prevented many students from engaging in rational discourse that I would expect and enjoy.

In the end, only one group of stu­dents stood behind my investigation—The Review itself. Although my expe­riences in race and politics were not ideal, I certainly discovered that there is a demand for conservatives willing to challenge the current norm of campus liberalism at Stanford. The Review is the home for these crusaders.

However, students—especially the prospective freshman visiting this weekend—need to seriously consider enjoying the university experience as an “extroverted conservative.” Don’t be timid or shy to express your dis­content with a professor’s teaching methods, investment disclosure, for­eign policy, or other issues. Generally, Stanford students are very receptive to opposing viewpoints. Even if you encounter resistance—you can count on The Review as a friend.