For a university that prides itself as being one of the most diverse schools in the country, Republicans have become quite the endangered species on a liberal SF State campus.

In fall 2010 the College Republicans, the official University organization, didn’t renew its status after seven years, leaving many students to wonder where the Republican population is hiding. It’s sadly reminiscent of the dwindling number of tigers in China.

Former club president Carl Clark claimed that all the members graduated, leaving no one left to be a part of the club. But with more than 30,000 students attending SF State, there has to be more than a handful of Republicans on campus.

SF State is known to lean to the left on most political issues, but it’s crucial to have an opposing voice on topics both inside the classroom and out.

If the University has set the tone that all voices are accepted on campus, then the idea that it’s OK to be anything except conservative has to change. The University needs to be able to represent opinions of all kinds.

Many Republicans have reported to Xpress that they have received rude reactions in the past when they tried to share their viewpoints in class.

A classroom should be an environment in which no students’ opinions are shunned. Have liberals become so tolerant that they have become intolerant of the opposing party?

Liberals make up a significant part of the San Francisco Bay Area and SF State is a campus that is known for protesting against conservative politics.

But did we ever consider that sharing an open forum with Republicans could be beneficial? While some students may not agree with what their peers have to say in a classroom,  if they can’t listen and understand the opposing party now, then they never will.

With the threads of rudeness and hostility, you can’t blame conservatives for hiding in the right-side corner.

While the College Republicans did have incidents on campus that provoked negative responses, it’s time to put the past behind us.

The simple fact is that no matter what political party a student identifies with, their voice and vote is valuable.

If opposing party students begin to speak up more, then we will be able to truly call ourselves a diverse campus. Until then, we will be waiting for conservatives to come out of the woodwork.

It takes two to tango.