CHANNEL: FOX NEWS. PROGRAM: FOX AND FRIENDS FIRST. AIR DATE: 03FEB06.
Female anchor: And some of our troops are having trouble on campus. We'll tell you why they're not at home at an ivy league university. We'll be right back.
Male anchor: That's not right.
COMMERCIALS.
UPDATE about Egyptian ferry sinking.
** START 0623 hrs.
Host (Peter J. Johnson, Jr): Thanks, Allison. Allegations of anti-military discrimination are being raised at Columbia University, just uptown nearby in Manhattan. With me to explain are Oscar Escano and Matt Sanchez. Both are members of the US Military Veterans of Columbia University organization. Good morning, guys. How are you?
Matt Sanchez, Oscar Escano: Good morning, sir ... good morning.
Host: Who is the President of the organization?
Oscar: I am.
Host: Okay. Oscar, tell me what's going on at Columbia?
Oscar: Well, what we feel is going on is there is a sentiment of sort of an anti-military, basically an intolerance of veterans and military persons, and we'd like to see that changed.
Host: Tell me about you. Are you a military veteran?
Oscar: Yes, sir.
Host: And what's your experience in the military?
Oscar: I served in the US Army in the First Ranger Battalion, from 1999 to 2002, and I fought in Operation Enduring Freedom.
Host: Thank you. And Matt Sanchez, you're a General Studies student at Columbia as well? And you're a Marine reservist?
Matt: Marine reservist.
Host: And you've been activated in the past.
Matt: Yes.
Host: Thank you for your service. What's going on at Columbia and what have you experienced?
Matt: What I experienced personally during Activities Day, a Columbia sponsored event, a group came over to us and they were protesting. I was by a table and one of the things this group continues to say is that minorities are being exploited by the military. I told the gentleman who was screaming and shouting that I'm a minority and I joined the military. I did so willingly and proudly. And he said, that's because you're too stupid to understand that you're being exploited. My response to that was to file a complaint with the administration.
Host: Well, that was a good disciplined response . . .
Matt: I kept my military bearing.
Host: ... well, I'm sure you were angry. Is the administration facilitating this kind of conduct? Is this the conduct of just a few people? I went to Columbia. I went to Columbia Law School. It's a great institution. I think you guys would both agree . . .
Matt: Absolutely.
Host: . . . that it is. It has a history of embracing the military back to World War Two. I mean, General Eisenhower became its president. What's going on do you think?
Matt: Well, sometime around I guess the Vietnam era, 68, things changed and became very radicalized. But today, certain people feel its okay to pick on members who are veterans at Columbia in order to protest the war or politics.
Host: Well, let me tell you what Columbia says about these charges. They say, "We value the contributions that our students who serve or have served in the military make to our diverse intellectual community, and we are committed to ensure that these students are treated with the same courtesy and respect that all of our students deserve. Indeed, the men and women who serve our country in uniform deserve our utmost admiration and support". Now, does that satisfy you guys?
Oscar: Well, I remain cautiously optimistic that the university will stand to its commitment to tolerance of all people. We're very familiar with the university's tolerance towards racial, ethnic, religious and other cultural groups. I'd like to see if they can actually walk the walk and extend that same tolerance to military service men and women.
Host: Matt, Oscar, each tell me one thing that Columbia can do today to make it better for our military men and women who are studying at Columbia, our veterans, or people who are going to go into the service at Columbia.
Oscar: I can tell you two things, Peter. The first thing is that Columbia needs to alter or rather amend its Discrimination and Harassment Policy, because right now it . . .
Host: We're running out of time. What do you say?
Matt: I say when an event like this happens, they should immediately make a statement, at least something denouncing this kind of behavior.
Host: Okay. Thank you both, and thank you for your service.
Oscar: Thank you.
** END 0627 hrs.
Transcribed by Eric Chen (elc2003 at columbia.edu). Post date: 11FEB06.
