It was inevitable. First the baker would not create a cake for a gay couple because of “deeply held religious beliefs;” then came the wedding photographer; then the pizzeria owner … and now the college student?
Some freshmen at Duke University have objected to an assigned summer reading list that included Fun Home, an award winning, New York Times best-selling novel. The book has been adapted into a Broadway play, winning five Tony awards, including Best Musical. Yes, the book is graphic and contains very personal, challenging and emotional issues of its author. But really?
“I feel as if I would have to compromise my personal Christian moral beliefs to read it,” Brian Grasso wrote on the Duke University Class of 2019 Facebook page.
Now, mind you, Duke University is not some second rate institution of higher learning. It is one of the more selective schools in the country. Last year it accepted only 14% of its applicants. In the most recent U.S. News and World Report survey of the top 100 American universities, it comes in at #8.
One could understand a baker or a photographer not wanting to participate in the celebration of a gay wedding because it offended their “deeply held religious beliefs” … however un-Christian that may be. But students at a select American university complaining about a book on a list that offends their Christian beliefs? As John McEnroe might say, “You can’t be serious!”
Perhaps those offended students should have researched colleges and universities better. Some top schools really do want to expand a student’s mind by subjecting them to material they might otherwise not be exposed to. Perhaps it’s the guidance counselor’s fault? Liberty University might have been a much better fit.
What next, an EMT refusing to give CPR to a gay person because it “offends their deeply held religious beliefs?” Talk about a slippery slope!
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