Ryan Sorba, Part Two
This is the second of a series of posts about Ryan Sorba, who has been lecturing on college campuses about “the born gay hoax.”
Fast forward a year or so to the fall of 2007. Sorba has refined his work, updated his lecture, added chapters to his book and gained confidence from countless hours spent reading C.S. Lewis, Bruce Thornton, Robert George and other conservative intellectuals. He also is no longer just a college student, but has a nice perch for a campus revolutionary working for a prestigious nonprofit group on the East Coast.
Between his work as a membership director and an activist for multiple other organizations, Sorba continues to work on his book and meet students who become interested in his ideas. One student he meets, Kyle Bristow, is a Michigan State University campus leader with Young Americans for Freedom, which was founded by William F. Buckley in the 1960’s. Kyle invites Sorba to lecture at MSU, the university where Russell Kirk, an Intercollegiate Studies Institute icon, once taught, before becoming completely disgusted with the academy and retreating into independent scholarship. Sorba gladly accepts the offer to speak and Bristow begins posting flyers around campus and sending out invitations to his group and the broader campus community. But this time around, he will face an onslaught of criticism, protests and a fundraising campaign aimed at countering his message.
The campus GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender) groups have heard about the speech that YAF is planning. They are upset and take this as a direct assault at their way of life. In fact, they state publicly that YAF is a “hate group” and that Sorba is spreading hatred and bigotry. The GLBT groups join forces with the Young Democratic Socialists and other left-wing groups to organize a viewing of Sorba’s lecture from Cal-State and a rebuttal session where they can argue against his point of view. They also decide to attend the event at MSU and speak out against Sorba’s ideas.
Given the academy’s record on allowing controversial events to take place, it is surprising that MSU doesn’t do anything to prevent the speech from happening. Eventually, the evening has come and Sorba walks across the campus, notes in hand and key themes on his mind. He isn’t sure what to expect when he arrives, but the room seems to be only somewhat more rowdy than the auditorium at Cal-State. Many in the audience hold signs of protest throughout the speech, or wear t-shirts that identify them as GLBT supporters. He delivers his lecture, slightly modified to present another part of his book, and faces a few jeers and outbursts, but gets through the talk without major incident. At the end, one student in particular keeps asking him questions, challenging him as he leaves the event. The two continue their heated discussion until Sorba leaves the campus.
Clearly the emotional and intellectual fires have been stoked in East Lansing, just as they were in California. Perhaps some students changed their minds, maybe some became more hardened in their position, but it is clear that the speech has made an impact on the students in one way or another. It has elicited a response from supporters and opponents alike, and has given the crowd plenty to think and talk about for weeks to come.
Tags: Ryan Sorba