Gene Nichol, the president of the College and William and Mary, stepped down today after a relentless smear campaign was waged against him by conservative lawmakers in Virginia. Ryan Powers, a former Center for American Progress intern and a senior at the College of William and Mary, has a great post over at Think Progress summarizing and analyzing the unfortunate series of events.

Nichol's greatest sins seem to have been his decisions to allow a student-funded organization to host a sexually themed art show and to have the university remove a crucifix from the non-denominational chapel on campus. He explained his decisions in an email sent to the school community this morning:

Former William and Mary President Gene Nichol.

(Image courtesy College of William and Mary) 

First, as is widely known, I altered the way a Christian cross was displayed in a public facility, on a public university campus, in a chapel used regularly for secular College events — both voluntary and mandatory — in order to help Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and other religious minorities feel more meaningfully included as members of our broad community. The decision was likely required by any effective notion of separation of church and state. And it was certainly motivated by the desire to extend the College’s welcome more generously to all. We are charged, as state actors, to respect and accommodate all religions, and to endorse none. The decision did no more.

Second, I have refused, now on two occasions, to ban from the campus a program funded by our student-fee-based, and student-governed, speaker series. To stop the production because I found it offensive, or unappealing, would have violated both the First Amendment and the traditions of openness and inquiry that sustain great universities. It would have been a knowing, intentional denial of the constitutional rights of our students. It is perhaps worth recalling that my very first act as president of the College was to swear on oath not to do so.

So, in essence, Nichol was pushed out of his job for protecting his students' First Amendment right and ensuring that a non-denominational religious building on campus is actually non-denominational. This episode can definitely be chalked up as evidence that America's college campuses aren't the liberal hotbeds some think them to be.

On a related note, I know I shouldn't be surprised that Michelle Malkin has completely misrepresented the story on her blog, but it's worth pointing out her inaccuracies when they pop up. She says Nichol resigned today over his "decision to hide the cross at the famous school chapel" and because he "hosted a sex workers show on campus." I guess that's one way to put it, but Nichols didn't "host" the art show like Malkin suggests, and he didn't really "hide a cross" at a chapel. It must be hard for Malkin to make her points without misrepresenting the facts.