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On November 22nd, SCIPE received an email from Danny Carroll apologizing
for the campaign mailing. A slightly modified version of this letter also appeared in
the Grinnell Herald Register that same day. To read the apology, click here.
To read SCIPE's response to Danny Carroll's apology,
published in the Grinnell Herald Register on Dec. 2, 2004 click here
SCIPE has yet to hear from the the Republican Party of Iowa.
We will continue to keep the petition posted so that people can express their discontent with the Repbulican Party.
To sign the petition click here.
or copy and paste this link into your browser:http://www.ipetitions.com/campaigns/grinnell
To see a full copy of the mailing click here
A few days before the Nov. 2, 2004 election, the Republican Party of Iowa sent a campaign mailing to residents of House District 75 in support of Rep. Danny Carroll's campaign for re-election to the House of Representatives of Iowa.
This "Election Alert" was offensive because of its inaccuracy and its implication that Grinnell College students should be treated differently than other residents of Iowa.
The mailer asks, "[W]hy would you let 1,000 east-coast liberal kids elect your representative?" There are nowhere close to 1,000 "kids" from the East Coast at Grinnell College. Approximately half of Grinnell's 1,400 students are from the Midwest, including over ten percent from Iowa, and another ten percent from outside the United States. Simple math disproves the claim that there are 1,000 students from the East Coast at Grinnell College.
Additionally, Grinnell College students are not all liberal. There is a wide spectrum of political viewpoints on Grinnell's campus which includes Republicans, Democrats, and students who identify as independents or with other parties. Mr. Carroll and the Republican Party do a disservice to the alumni and currently enrolled students who support the Republican Party when they promote divisive false stereotypes of Grinnell College students.
More disturbing than the mailer's factual inaccuracy and its use of stereotypes is the implication that Grinnell students should not be allowed to vote in Iowa. The mailer declares, "They're not from here. They won't stay here. But they're voting here." This claim implies that students should not have representation in the government that governs them. Students live in Iowa for at least nine months of the year for four years. They are governed by the laws of Iowa that entire time. For that reason, all qualified Iowa residents, including students, should have the ability to vote in Iowa.
Therefore, we the undersigned:
1) Ask that the Republican Party of Iowa publicly apologize for this mailing.
And,
2) Ask that Rep. Danny Carroll publicly renounce and explain the mailing.
To sign the petition click here
To view petition signatures click here.
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