COUNTERPOINT: USC should not censor von KleinSmid’s contributions

After years of protesting and expressing their discomfort, students at Yale University successfully convinced their university’s administration that the name of John C. Calhoun College should be changed. The University announced that the name of Yale alumnus Grace Murray Hopper would be replacing that of the controversial Yale alumnus and 19th-century American politician. This change comes in the wake of pressure from movements all over the country dedicated to re-evaluating historical buildings that bear the titles of controversial figures.

USC is no stranger to this pressure. The Daily Trojan published a column over a year ago that called for renaming the USC Von KleinSmid Center in light of allegations raised against former USC President Rufus B. von KleinSmid’s character. Urban legends and rumors about von KleinSmid abound, but few have credibility. However, let it be known that there is no doubt as to von KleinSmid’s loyalty to the theories of eugenics — he delivered a presentation on the topic in 1913 and spoke very highly of intensely controversial topics, such as sterilization of the “unfit” and compulsory institutionalization of the mentally disabled. Practices like these represent a horrific threat to civil rights and liberties, which goes without saying, but von KleinSmid did much more over the course of his life than advocate for debunked and dangerous theories of pseudoscience.

Documented facts about von KleinSmid’s positive contributions to USC are numerous. These facts include such distinctions as secularizing the University in 1928 (it was a Methodist institution in its early years). Additionally, under von KleinSmid’s leadership, the University’s student body swelled in size and diversity. Finally, von KleinSmid’s dedication to international affairs, cooperation and education helped create one of the first schools of international relations in the world — right here at USC. Clearly, von KleinSmid’s influence over the development of USC in its most formative time was critical to the creation of the modern, international university that we now attend.

With greater access to information, it is very easy to draw attention to a historical figure’s faults, both perceived and real. In many cases, rightfully so, the theories of eugenics that von KleinSmid supported were undeniably used as an excuse to marginalize and do great harm to minority groups in the 20th century and so ought to be spurned. Yet, spurning those theories does not necessitate the erasure of von KleinSmid’s legacy.

Erasing the names of historical figures like von KleinSmid also erases recognition of their contributions to the communities that they served — communities that we are members of. That some historical figures held views contrary to modern conceptions of morality should drive students to discuss and seek understanding of those views, not to clamor for their proponents’ erasure. It would be ridiculous to argue, for example, that Abraham Lincoln’s exalted name and immense contributions to the United States should not be remembered because of the documented fact that he did not believe in the inherent equality of white people and people of color.  Likewise, von KleinSmid held unsavory views, and those views ought to be freely criticized; but he also spurred the University’s growth from a denominational college to a reputable and secular research institution. To remove his name would pay short shrift to his critical guidance of the University.

The names of buildings on USC’s campus should be reserved for those who have made the greatest contributions to the Trojan community. Since the Von KleinSmid Center is the among the most visible and central buildings on USC’s campus, it is appropriate that it be reserved to honor the legacy of one of USC’s most influential administrators. Certainly, there are past and present members of the Trojan family who have also made momentous contributions to the USC community and have less controversy attached to their names than Rufus B. von KleinSmid. Norman Topping is one of them; Minnie C. Miltimore is another.

That those individuals should be remembered and commemorated is not in question. What is being debated is if it is proper to censor the name and recognition of a pivotal figure in USC’s history in order to make more room for them. When the weight of each figure’s contributions to USC are compared, it clearly is not. The name of the Von KleinSmid Center should remain the same, but that should not stop Trojans from requesting that figures like Topping and Miltimore get recognition of their own by naming future University buildings after them, as well.

Trevor Kehrer is a senior majoring in political science. “Point/Counterpoint” runs Wednesdays.