Conservative Student News

Photo credit: www.urbancure.org

Who would like to see Star Parker on campus? Well, the St. Thomas Standard certainly would and the St. Thomas Students for Human Life agree: Bringing Star to St. Thomas would not only be beneficial for all who hear her, but also enjoyable, educational, and a wonderful inspiration to our Catholic university. On March 6, 2008, Margaret Cahill is presenting this wish of the St. Thomas Standard and the SHL to the Student Life Committee of St. Thomas.

For those of you who are not familiar with Parker, let me briefly introduce you to the woman that I had the great pleasure of listening to only a year and a half ago. Star Parker is the founder and president of CURE, the Coalition on Urban Renewal & Education, which is a 501c3 non-profit think tank, giving a national voice of reason on issues of race and poverty in the media, inner city neighborhoods, and public policy.

While Parker's life has not always been a bowl of cherries, she shares all she has with those around her through her positive and enthusiastic social activism. Star Parker, once a single mother living on welfare in Los Angeles, California, found a place for Christ in her life. As her faith grew, her desire to share it grew as well.

Star decided to return to college, where she received a BS degree in marketing and then started an urban Christian magazine. Unfortunately, the 1992 Los Angeles riots destroyed her business. However, Parker would not let these horrible circumstances stop her mission. Her passion for life and sharing with others only increased, and she channeled and focused her energy on faith and market-based alternatives to empower the lives of the poor and disenfranchised members of society.

As a social policy consultant, Parker regularly testifies before the United States Congress. She is also a national expert on major television and radio shows across the country and is currently a regular commentator on CNN, MSNBC, and FOX News. Further, Star Parker has debated Jesse Jackson on BET; fought for school choice on Larry King Live; defended welfare reform on The Oprah Winfrey Show; and put up with a considerable amount of nonsense from the women on The View.

It seems nothing can stop this energetic Christian woman from making her mark on the world. Star Parker's personal transformation from welfare fraud to conservative crusader has been recorded by ABC's 20/20; Rush Limbaugh; Readers Digest; Dr. James Dobson; The 700 Club; Dr. George Grant; the Washington Times; Christianity Today; Charisma, and World Magazine. Further, articles and quotes from Parker have appeared in major publications including the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and the New York Times.

In addition, Parker has written three books: "Pimps, Whores, and Welfare Brats" (1996), "Uncle Sam's Plantation" (2003), and "White Ghetto" (2006). Today, not only does she lead the non-profit, CURE, but Star is also a syndicated columnist for Scripps Howard News Service, contributing weekly to more than 400 newspapers worldwide.

Star has an amazing personal story to share; she has wisdom and insight as a social activist, a mother, and a woman who has made a great change not only internally but in the world around her! It should not be surprising that St. Thomas students hope to bring Star Parker to our campus to speak on "The Origins of Planned Parenthood," on Monday, April 21, 2008. Star Parker's talk would be presented by the St. Thomas Standard, the St. Thomas Students for Human Life, and the Young America's Foundation (YAF).

YAF is the key outreach organization of the Conservative Movement. It educates thousands of students on the ideas of individual freedom, a strong national defense, free enterprise, and traditional values. YAF offers conferences, educational materials, internships and speakers to young people throughout the United States.

Additionally, as its website, www.yaf.org, attests, YAF "stepped in to save President Reagan's Western White House, Rancho del Cielo, in the spring of 1998 to preserve it as a living monument to Reagan's legacy and to make it the centerpiece of the Presidential Leadership Program." Star Parker's speech-which would be open to the public-will hopefully take place at 7:00 p.m. in O'Shaughnessy Educational Center Auditorium at St. Thomas. She is a pleasure to listen to and an inspiring figure to meet, so I hope everyone who wishes to see her speak at St. Thomas gets the chance to do so!