Tag: Virginia Military Institute
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The VMI Story You Haven’t Heard
by James A. Bacon The Washington Post and Northam administration have done a fine job of wrecking the reputation of the Virginia Military Institute. On the basis of a dozen anecdotes shorn from any context, the Post declared VMI guilty of “relentless racism” and elaborated upon the charge in more than 20 articles since. Declaring…
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Slater Resigns from SCHEV, Citing Political Interference from Governor’s Office
by James A. Bacon Thomas G. Slater, Jr., a prominent Virginia Military Institute alumnus, submitted his resignation from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) today, citing political pressure from the office of Governor Ralph Northam to bias the outcome of the VMI racism investigation by an outside law firm, Barnes & Thornburg.…
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Still Clueless After All These Years
by James A. Bacon In his latest hit job on the Virginia Military Institute, the Washington Post’s Ian Shapira weaves into his account responses to questions submitted to Governor Ralph Northam in writing. Northam, who served as president of the Honor Court and graduated from the Institute in 1981, comes across as totally clueless. “I…
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WaPo Reduces VMI to a Black-and-White Morality Tale
by James A. Bacon The latest blockbuster finding in The Washington Post’s jihad against the Virginia Military Institute: African-American cadets experienced racism four decades ago. According to interviews with 12 African Americans who attended VMI at the same time as Governor Ralph Northam around 1980, black cadets endured frequent racist insults. They were uncomfortable with…
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Wins Appointed as 15th VMI Superintendent
by James A. Bacon Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins will serve as the Virginia Military Institute’s 15th superintendent after a unanimous vote by the military academy’s Board of Visitors this morning. A 1985 VMI graduate and career military officer, Wins has served as interim superintendent since shortly after the November resignation of J.H. Binford Peay…
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What Does the VMI Board Have Planned?
by James A. Bacon The Virginia Military Institute Board of Visitors surprised the VMI community when it posted a notice Monday that it had scheduled a special meeting tomorrow, April 15, to notify the public of its intent “to vote on the selection of the next Superintendent of the Institute.” The widespread expectation was that…
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Maybe VMI Needs to Close on Our Terms
A modest proposal by Shaun Kenney The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a hallowed institution to many. VMI men have a certain command presence that is rooted in realism yet rarely if ever accepts impossible as a status quo. The things that make VMI such an institution are the intangibles. VMI’s storied Honor Code, her…
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The Rebellion Takes to the Air Waves
Don’t have time to read Bacon’s Rebellion’s full post about the Barnes & Thornburg questionnaire used to divine perceptions of racism at the Virginia Military Institute? Catch the highlights in John Reid’s interview of me on WRVA this morning. Click here to listen. — JAB
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The Resistance Gathers: VMI Edition
by James A. Bacon A group of Virginia Military Institute alumni have created a political action committee, The Spirit of VMI, to raise money to support political candidates who are friendly to the preservation of VMI institutions and traditions. “Our mission and objectives are to stop the decay of VMI caused by outside legislative influence,”…
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The Honor Code Is the Heart of the VMI Experience
by Carmen Villani Honor does not see color of skin. Honor does not see gender. Honor does not see socioeconomic status. What it does see is the “dream” of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. — judging a person based upon content of his or her character. Honor is not a casual word that is tossed around…
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Dissecting the Washington Post’s Latest Hit Job on VMI
by James A. Bacon The Washington Post needs to adopt a new motto: “We cherry pick the news so you don’t have to.” The Post, the newspaper with the largest circulation in Virginia, committed itself last year to the narrative that Virginia Military Institute is a place where African-Americans are subjected to “relentless racism.” The…
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Racism Investigators Report Use of the N-Word at VMI
by James A. Bacon After interviews with 46 Virginia Military Institute alumni, ten members of the Board of Visitors, 14 current and past faculty members, five cadets and four parents, Barnes & Thornburg, the law firm appointed by the Northam administration to probe racism at the military academy, has identified eight individuals who said they…
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The VMI Contract: Why the Rush?
by James A. Bacon Last November 5, the Commonwealth of Virginia issued an RFP for a contract to investigate racism at the Virginia Military Institute. The document set an ambitious deadline. Responses were due November 17 — giving vendors less than two weeks to prepare submissions. Moreover, the document wanted the successful bidder to provide…
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VMI Update: The WaPo Makes Another Sleazy Insinuation
by James A. Bacon In the early stages of the Barnes & Thornburg investigation into racism at the Virginia Military Institute, there was some contention over how the inquiry should be handled. Initially, VMI administrators asked for its lawyers to observe investigators’ interviews of faculty, staff and students. Barnes & Thornburg pushed back, saying the…
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Fix Was In for VMI Contract, Lawsuit Alleges
by James A. Bacon In awarding a contract to investigate racism at the Virginia Military Institute, the Northam administration stacked the deck in favor of preferred vendor, Barnes & Thornburg, and stymied efforts by a competing bidder, the Center for Applied Innovation (CAI), to contest the award, alleges a suit filed by CAI in Richmond…