MAY 1, 2025 | NEWS | By Isabelle Rosewater (Staff Writer)
The conservative student group, Young Americans for Freedom (YAF), brought Venezuelan economist and speaker Daniel Di Martino to discuss an economic approach to regulating immigration, funded last minute by CC administration after the Student Government Finance Committee denied funding for the event.
Prior to the speech, Interim President Manya Whitaker and other CC faculty had received a letter from Victor Bernson, vice president and general counsel for the national Young America’s Foundation.
The letter accused the college and CCSGA of “significant, ongoing unlawful and improper actions … in violation of the College’s Freedom of Expression policy and essential due process guarantees” after CCSGA declined to support the event.
Bernson’s letter accused the college of “discriminating against CCYAF based on its viewpoint” and threatened an investigation into any federal funds the school receives. Berson did not respond to email requests for comment from The Catalyst.
After receiving the letter, the college decided to fund the event the night before it took place without communicating with CCSGA to inform them of the change, according to an email obtained by The Catalyst.
Colorado College did not disclose where the funds for the event originated to The Catalyst.
“We fund YAF as a club,” said Student Body President Koray Gates ‘25. “And we made clear to them that we want them to keep coming back and requesting funding for events that are in line with our bylaws.”
Rakim Johnson ‘26, vice president of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, heard student feedback that the event was “xenophobic” and “quite frankly racist,” amidst rising concerns regarding violence against international and undocumented students during the Trump Administration.
Reign la France ‘25, the Vice President of the CCSGA Finance Committee, said that in addition to a conversation about partisanship, the Finance Committee considered current events in higher education nationwide.
“We just didn’t think it was the time and place for that specific speaker to come,” said la France.
Joanna Oster ‘26, who is Chairwoman of CCYAF, had a different view.
“CCSGA denied our funding request because they do not represent the interests of all students and are biased against a differing perspective,” Oster said. “They placed personal opinions above their own bylaws, making it impossible for us to meet their standards.”
Some student representatives said they were displeased with the lack of communication and discourse between the college administration and CCSGA when making the decision to fund the event.
Sophia Murphy, the sophomore representative of internal affairs, said she felt undervalued.
“It feels disrespectful to our positions and the student body that elected us,” she said. “It’s upsetting to me that the administration is able to do that without talking to us.”
Gates stands by the decision not to fund the event.
“I’m proud that everyone was able to come together and have that discussion and think critically,” he said.
Lacy Karpilo, vice president for student life and dean of students, said that her office would work more closely with the CCSGA regarding implementing additional educational components for current and incoming leadership, including guidance on viewpoint-neutral decision making regarding application of bylaws and procedures.
“Civil discourse is a cornerstone of democracy,” said Karpilo. “We hope to instill the value that brings to enriching the liberal arts experience.”
Posters for the event were torn, stolen and vandalized. Mock posters were created for the event and posted online, as well as hung around campus, bearing offensive messages related to the event.
As for other poster-related incidents, Bernson’s letter mentioned alleged inconsistencies with poster policy at Colorado College, stating that the College “engaged in a quick, ex post facto exercise to justify its repression of CCYAF’s previously authorized advertising actions,” regarding building rules and installing a new official building manager in Palmer Hall.
Karpilo said that the Dean of the College and the Dean of Students are “working on a process for poster approval for buildings with no designated manager.”
Oster felt that CCYAF was receiving different treatment for their posters than other student groups.
“While we’ve followed these new restrictions, it’s clear that other organizations have not been held to the same standard,” said Oster.
Mandy Sulfrian, the newly appointed building manager in Palmer Hall, said the poster removals were due to lack of pre-approval and safety concerns over quantity and placement, and did not have anything to do with ideological differences.
When it came to the event and speech itself, Di Martino, a Ph.D. candidate in Economics at Columbia University, focused on a range of immigration issues.
Di Martino argued for a shift in the concentration of who can enter the United States based on their expected contributions to the economy, favoring welcoming high-skilled immigration and considering factors such as education level and willingness to assimilate.
He advocated for discrimination against immigrants entering the United States on the basis of holding ‘American’ values and ideology rather than nationality, and criticized the immigration system for its ineffectiveness in deporting immigrants convicted of crimes.
“Why would you come here if you hated America?” he said.
One student, Rogers Crowley ‘27, was compelled by Di Martino’s argument of creating standards to promote skilled immigration.
“Being at a liberal arts institution like this … events like this are a great opportunity to gain wisdom,” he said.
Other attendees of the event did not find Di Martino’s argument to be convincing, but were open to hearing a new perspective on campus.
“I think that as liberal arts students, we are here to establish critical thinking skills and be able to differentiate things and think for ourselves,” said Davis Dunn ‘28. “The political climate at CC is not welcoming whatsoever.”
Dunn was surprised that the college did not fund the event until the night before.
“They should be the ones promoting the spread of different ideas,” he said. “I think [the college is] trying to be conservative in the sense that they want to respect the student population here and they want people here to feel safe, but because of that they’re making kids hear the same ideas again and again.”
This story has been edited for clarity.