Republican Sen Ted Cruz appeared earlier this week at Liberty University in Virginia to announce that he was running for president in 2016, becoming the first major candidate in the Democratic or Republican parties to formally declare. Cruz delivered the news at Liberty the largest Christian university in the world before a gathering of students. What you might not know about that gathering was that the students were required to attend. This post explains what happened and why. It was written by Alexandra Markovich, a 19-year-old student at Princeton University who is a member of the University Press Club, a selective group of undergraduate students who freelance for regional and national publications. Markovich is an intended major in the Woodrow Wilson School of International and Public Affairs with a focus in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies.

By Alexandra Markovich

Ted Cruz became the first Republican candidate to officially announce his 2016 presidential campaign in front of an audience of 11,000 college students on March 23, 2015. The catch: they had to be there. Cruz made his announcement on Monday morning at Liberty University, where Convocation is mandatory to students living on campus at risk of a $10 fine for failing to attend.

As sophomore Luke Wittel walked through the doors of the Vines Center, home to Libertys mens and womens basketball teams, he was offered an American Flag, the first thing that made Wittel realize this was going to be more political rally than spiritual gathering. The American flags blended patriotism and support for Ted Cruz, Wittel said, in a way that made him nervous.

All Wittel could do to show his disagreement was not to take the flag. Wittel said that when he asked his RA if he could be excused and not be forced into apparent political association, he was sternly reminded of school policy. Throughout the hour-long Convocation, Wittel said he was not allowed to leave.

Liberty University is an evangelical university in Lynchburg, Virginia founded by the late pastor Jerry Falwell in 1971. A recent Washington Post article called Liberty the symbolic center of the GOP political-religious universe in recent years. The social conservative youth ticket will be an important card to punch in the GOP campaign.

Seeing the American flags handed out left Wittel with bitter feelings of political exploitation. Nothing makes you feel more like a pawn than being told to hold this and sit down, he said. But, Wittel sees logic behind holding the announcement at Liberty.

See the article here:

Strauss: Liberty University students say they were required to attend Ted Cruz speech