Liberty University alumni are upset over their president's endorsement of Donald Trump


Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. announced his endorsement of Donald Trump on Tuesday, and it has some alumni in an uproar, World reports. The evangelical leader's endorsement came eight days after Trump spoke on the school's campus, an event that resulted in protests and controversy among current students and graduates and made headlines for Trump's widely-mocked "Two Corinthians" gaffe.
"If we'd known an endorsement was imminent, we may have spoken up louder and sooner... For a school that focuses on loving God and loving other people, it's odd to endorse someone who only seems to love himself and other people who love him," Liberty graduate and former Virginia Secretary of the Commonwealth Janet Kelly said.
Dean Inserra, a 2003 graduate and the lead pastor of a respected Southern Baptist congregation in Tallahassee, was also less than pleased with Falwell's endorsement. "To try to equate Christian fruit with creating jobs is laughable. It's insulting to anyone who paid a lot of money to attend that school," Inserra told World.
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Liberty University tweeted that it had no comment on the endorsement as Falwell's backing was a personal one. However, graduates point out that Fallwell wouldn't have his platform if it weren't for his position at the school. "Even though he did make the endorsement in his personal capacity, he's not stupid — he has to realize that it reflects on students, on teachers, on staff, on donors, and on the school," Liberty's 2013 senior class president Chelsea Patterson said.
"When Jerry Falwell Jr. makes a personal endorsement of Donald Trump, there are tens of thousands of us in our workplaces and stations who have to explain the rationale for it,” Liberty graduate and former Pennsylvania state Rep. Jeff Coleman said. "It's not just a decision that impacts one person or one family."
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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