Originally published in The Sylva Herald on Feb. 21, 2019.
Former RNC chairman Michael Steele speaking to WCU students and their families. Photo by Patrick Clemons.
Michael Steele, who spoke to a packed crowd at the Bardo Fine & Performing Arts Center during the chancellor’s list ceremony on Feb. 12, gave students inspiration to lead.
Steele is known for being the first African-American elected to state office in Maryland as he was the lieutenant governor from 2003-2007 then became the chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2009-2011.
Steele started by criticizing the way we sometimes pick our leaders and that intellectual diversity is needed.
“We gravitate towards the ones that sound most like us. Well, that’s not necessarily leadership. That’s certainly not necessarily a good thing in all instances, but it kind of speaks to the space we find ourselves in right now,” said Steele.
Steele then mentioned how we as a community and political leaders alike tend to not engage in civil discourse.
“We’ve allowed ourselves to become comfortable sitting in our respective tribes and throwing stones and blaming and namecalling and cussing out each other and fussing at each other. That’s not leadership,” said Steele. He continued by saying these leaders come into these tension-filled situations and absorb the anger and frustration given off by others.
Steele explained our current political climate by saying that our government works its current way because we want it to or allow it to continually operate a certain way and if we don’t like it then we should stand up for what we believe in. He mentioned the survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Stoneman Douglas High School shooting along with the “#MeToo” movement.
“When the Parkland students decided they’d had enough, they didn’t ask permission to change the laws in Florida. They didn’t ask permission to represent their dead classmates. They didn’t ask permission for their voices to be heard. When young women have had enough, they didn’t ask permission to call out the misogyny and the abuse that they had endured and had watched others including their mothers and their sisters endure. They didn’t ask permission, they used their voice. They stood their ground, they took their place and they led,” said Steele.
Hear his full speech.
Political science professor, Dr. Niall Michelsen noticed how the speech was catered specifically to chancellor’s list students.
“Michael Steele seemed to address very clearly, this elitism that’s at the nature of the chancellor’s list. It’s a designation and it’s earned. He, in essence, said, you guys are special. You guys are going to be in positions of leadership and think about that in a different way, in a way that is inclusive,” Michelsen said.
This message of inclusiveness and civil discourse is similar to the speech former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch gave to WCU students in 2018.
Chancellor’s list student Jonathan Dalton gave his thoughts on the speech overall.
“I enjoyed Mr. Steele’s speech. In my opinion, it was a thoughtful and comical reflection on what it means to truly be a leader. He was engaging and captivated the audience with his humor and sincerity of his words,” said Dalton.
He also described his favorite part of Steele’s speech.
“My favorite part of the speech was when he spoke about the time he arrived at a church at Vanderbilt University. He was told by the head minister to hand over the keys to his vehicle. He told this anecdote to illustrate that leaders are obedient and sacrifice themselves to better others, and that is at the core of what it means to be a leader. This part was a fresh and unique perspective that most people never consider when they think of leadership,” said Dalton
The next speaker in the Distinguished Speaker Series will be author Cristina Henríquez and will take place on Thursday, March 21 in the A.K. Hinds University Center Grand Room at 7:30 p.m.
