What are we really saying 'Yes' to?

The announcement on the Princeton web page regarding the choice of Dean Hargadon as speaker for the Senior Baccalaureate has angered me and many other Princeton students, contrary to the majority of comments made public in relation to his selection.

A general aura of praise and approval toward Hargadon has been imposed on me and on many others who are uncomfortable with the Dean's conduct. In the story about Hargadon on the Princeton web page, President Tilghman is quoted as saying "The class felt very strongly that having been welcomed into Princeton by Dean Fred, they now would like to hear from him again as they, and he, move on to the next stages of their lives."

Since there was never a general vote on this issue, I believe this is a misrepresentation of the voices of individuals in the senior class. Who speaks for our class?

I do not believe that he is a good choice to give this address because Hargadon does not represent the values that we as a community should be respecting and promoting. First off, I do not agree that the senior class as a whole feels positively toward Dean Hargadon, nor do I feel that he really cares about all the members of the Princeton student community. For many years, he has consistently taken an antagonistic and, in my opinion, discriminatory stand toward queer students and organizations on campus. He has never allowed for the inclusion of queer groups in the Admissions Bulletin (these include the Pride Alliance and LGBT Student Services among others), even after repeated requests from students. As a matter of fact, I spoke with him myself on this issue earlier this year and pointed out that all other major minority, cultural, and religious groups were mentioned in some way in the bulletin. Sections have been dedicated to women, to religious groups, and to ethnic and racial minorities.

He responded to me by claiming that sexual orientation was indeed mentioned in the bulletin, and that queer-related groups were included. This is not the case, as I pointed out to him.

I have subsequently spoken to President Tilghman about the issue, and she was astounded that Princeton had been representing itself in such a way. She made it clear to me and to a group of administrators involved with student life that queer persons would be included as of next year.

In light of the fact that other students have discussed this problem with him in the past, I regard his seemingly innocent claim that queer persons were included in the Bulletin as a blatant lie. Someone who has such ill-will toward a large segment of the Princeton community and who has exhibited a clear disregard of Princeton's nondiscrimination policy for access to educational materials and activities — outlined in Rights, Rules, and Responsibilities — should be criticized and held accountable, rather than lauded and given the honor of speaking during our commencement activities. Furthermore, lies and deception are not part of the values represented by the baccalaureate ceremony. If this had been an isolated incident, I would feel much more inclined to overlook it, but as you are aware, Hargadon's office was involved earlier this year in another despicable act of disrespect.

Let us not forget that Hargadon is most likely leaving this year because the office under his direction breached individual privacy rights by hacking into student files at the Yale Admissions office. In my opinion, we should stop saying "Yes" to lies, discrimination, and disrespect — even if he did say "Yes" to us.