Last week, I sat down to dinner with Ruth Malhotra, who was being hosted as a guest speaker by a conservative group of students at American University. She spoke during an informal, question-and-answer style presentation with a table full of conservative students on what she feels are the key aspects of conservative campus activism.
Ruth Malhotra is a senior from Georgia Tech who is president of her school’s chapter of College Republicans. The “A” student made national headlines two years ago when she was she was famously abused by a militant leftist professor for her conservative political views. During the first week of a required public policy class she indirectly told her professor that she would be attending the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, DC. The professor then told Ruth that she would fail the professor’s class. Ruth didn’t quite know what to make of her professor and shrugged off the bizarre interaction. That is, until she received her first test back with an “F” on it. Ruth took her story to the Education Committee of the Georgia State Assembly, and was able to give massive exposure to the tax-dollar-funded school.
While at AU, Ruth emphasized the need for active and informed conservatives on campus. She stressed the vital importance of conservatives knowing their arguments. She said that it is too often that she sees college conservatives handing out fliers for causes they don’t fully understand.
As organizers of campus activism, Malhotra repeatedly urged her small audience to make sure that “your kids know their numbers.” For example, students pounding pavement for pro-life causes should know off the top of their heads what percentage of abortions actually occur because of rape or incest, and the disproportionate amount of women who have multiple abortions.
She also stressed the importance of self-reflection. She said that it is critical to going into Republican Party activism with caution and clearly stated personal goals, because that will help keep Republican politicians from straying from conservative ideals.
Christine Inauen is a sophomore at the Catholic University of America in Washington. D. C.
