Going right against the grain

Few ethnic, political or social groups at NYU can claim to be victims of genuine day-to-day discrimination.

But every Thursday at 6 p.m., room 808 in Kimmel fills with one group that could perhaps make that claim: the NYU College Republicans.

"It can get very difficult," said CAS senior David Laska. "Despite what Sexton may say on TV about NYU being a bastion of open thought and a grand exchange of ideas, it's different if you're from the other half of the country."

Laska, raised by his right-leaning family in the liberal Connecticut town of Westport, sought out the College Republicans as soon as he arrived at NYU. Now, three years down the line, Laska is the group's president and a former treasurer.

He said being conservative at NYU can be difficult.

"I have been assumed to be racist, fascist and too many other things that I am not," Laska said. "People often come at you like a pack of wolves, and it's easier to be openly gay than it is to be openly conservative."

It's hard not to wonder why a conservative student, fully aware of NYU's reputation as a liberal school, would apply here.

"I enjoy the challenge of having my views questioned," Laska said. "When you are forced to constantly re-evaluate your own stances, your views may change. But they may also — as in my case — become even stronger."

Despite challenges, Laska enjoys being in the College Republicans.

"We hang out after meetings, we play football, we really like each other," he said. "We also host and participate in far more events than we used to, all over New York, with Republican clubs from other colleges and regions."

Each meeting features a guest speaker. On Oct. 15, it was Harry Stein, author of the book "I Can't Believe I'm Sitting Next to a Republican: A Survival Guide for Conservatives Marooned Among the Angry, Smug, and Terminally Self-Righteous." Past speakers have included prominent figures such as NYU professor emeritus Herbert London, NYU political science professor Lawrence Mead and Edward Cox, the incoming chairman of the New York Republican Party.

Laska will graduate in the spring, but he isn't sure what he's doing after NYU — though he's recently become interested in television news and has decided not to go to law school.

He has high hopes for the legacy of the NYU College Republicans.

"For now, I hope to leave behind a large, high-profile club," he said, "so as to end closet conservatism, to make sure everyone here knows they have somewhere to go where they fit in, where they won't be required to constantly defend their views all alone."