Talk:A. Lawrence Lowell

message: This page should mention the Lowell Commission, headed by Lowell, which famously recommended against clemency for Sacco and Vanzetti.
* The page now mentions the Lowell Commission -- Dennis 21:03, 28 April 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Comment

message: * Recently, Lowell's administration has been denounced for bigotry towards Jews and other ethnic minorities. He supported a 15-percent quota on Jewish students, warning "the summer hotel that is ruined by admitting Jews meets its fate because they drive away the Gentiles, and then after the Gentiles have left, they leave also." He also segregated the school's dormitories by race, banishing African-Americans from Harvard Yard. "We have not thought it possible to compel men of different races to reside together," Lowell explained. 
* Despite this, Lowell's portrait still hangs prominently in the dining hall at Lowell House, and his bust remains in the courtyard. In 2005, a small movement of students, calling themselves the 'Lowell Liberation Front', lobbied to have both likenesses removed.
These bits have been removed. No longer an issue. Bmclaughlin9 (talk) 00:46, 1 December 2010 (UTC)
thread_title: Other Controversy

message: I agree that the "Lowell Liberation Front" should be removed.  The antics of a couple of undergrads with too much time on their hands don't merit mention in Wikipedia. (I lived in another house, but I worked in Lowell Dining Hall for 4 years, so I know wherof I speak.) I also object to the negative slant Lowell is given in this article, since I have some sympathy with many of his positions.
====Did he do anything good as President of Harvard?====
Lowell does seem like a despicable human, at least from a 21st century perspective.  However, he did serve as Harvard President for many years.  Can someone provide info on non-controversial accomplishments during his tenure?  --Wikismile 19:46, 19 December 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: He founded the Commission on Extension Courses which seems to have resulted in the creation of the Harvard Extension School - "He saw the Commission as an experiment in 'popular education' to serve the 'many people in our community who have not been to college but who have the desire and the aptitude to profit by as much of a college education as, amid the work of earning their living, they are able to obtain.'” —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Gskuse (talk • contribs) 05:37, 25 February 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Controversies 

message: Lowell does seem like a despicable human, at least from a 21st century perspective.  However, he did serve as Harvard President for many years.  Can someone provide info on non-controversial accomplishments during his tenure?  --Wikismile 19:46, 19 December 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: He founded the Commission on Extension Courses which seems to have resulted in the creation of the Harvard Extension School - "He saw the Commission as an experiment in 'popular education' to serve the 'many people in our community who have not been to college but who have the desire and the aptitude to profit by as much of a college education as, amid the work of earning their living, they are able to obtain.'” —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Gskuse (talk • contribs) 05:37, 25 February 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Did he do anything good as President of Harvard?

message: I just bought a book by Lowell called "Public Opinion and Popular Government" (1914) which is not mentioned in the article. In one chapter, he argues that you can't have any true "public opinion" unless you have a homogenous population, but public opinion is essential to a democracy! He skirts the American race issue (merely asserting that immigrants must assimilate) and avoids discussing what should be done if a country is not homogenous. He also appears to believe that democracy in multi-ethnic Switzerland is an aberration.
====Brandeis====
This article states that Lowell branded Brandeis as a radical Zionist but states that Brandeis was not a practicing Jew. In Brandeis' own article it states he was involved in the Zionist movement - indeed was the leader of the American movement. So is this article mistaken in that respect?  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.223.243.6 (talk) 20:28, 7 December 2009 (UTC)
replies: text: No longer an issue. Bmclaughlin9 (talk) 00:48, 1 December 2010 (UTC)
thread_title: Lowell's Own Opinions

message: This article states that Lowell branded Brandeis as a radical Zionist but states that Brandeis was not a practicing Jew. In Brandeis' own article it states he was involved in the Zionist movement - indeed was the leader of the American movement. So is this article mistaken in that respect?  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.223.243.6 (talk) 20:28, 7 December 2009 (UTC)
replies: text: No longer an issue. Bmclaughlin9 (talk) 00:48, 1 December 2010 (UTC)
thread_title: Brandeis

message: I've decided to add a bit about academic freedom circa World War I, one of my interests, but stopped by to say that I find this article distressing. There are ways to write about controversy without beating people over the head. I hope to return and try to do that. It's possible to state facts, sometimes ugly facts, in ways that maintain a certain distance and that are appropriate to this enterprise. When I do so, I will do it carefully and in small steps so I can listen for feedback.
But one large step will be, I think, required first. The "re-appraisals" should be part of the narrative of Lowell's life. That would require in the first place that the narrative itself be extended. I'll get around to that soon. Then, for example, the Sacco and Vanzetti material would appear in the proper point in the chronology. The events would be recounted dispassionately and include contemporary assessments pro and con. Later "re-appraisals" could, I think, be handled in a footnote unless there is some sort of ongoing debate of significance that I'm unaware of that needs to be treated under "Legacy: good and bad."
On a related note, I'm working on a complete revision of the Secret Court of 1920, which drew me -- you know how these things work -- into some quite distantly related reading on academic freedom and now here.
Bmclaughlin9 (talk) 19:14, 20 December 2009 (UTC)
thread_title: Quality and NPOV

message: I'm curious what things at Harvard and elsewhere have been named after him. I know Lowell House is one, and the article mentions some other buildings that originally bore his name. Do others think this would be a worthwhile addition? Also, it may be worth mentioning within the controvery section that he was key in keeping women out of the Law School and vocally opposed to their admission. At the time, many other law schools allowed women. As a female HLS alumna, am I too interested a party to add this? -68.173.61.84 (talk) 22:54, 24 April 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: I believe (not certain) that Lowell House was formally named for the Lowell family though there's an ALL over the main Holyoke Place gate.  Not sure about Lowell Lecture Hall. My suggestion would be to call the Lowell House office and ask who the House historian is -- they'd probably be the best place to start. EEng (talk) 23:47, 24 April 2015 (UTC)
thread_title: Legacy

message: *After a large number of Harvard students were arrested during a Harvard Square riot, Lowell pledged responsibility in court for the students' appearance at subsequent proceedings. "Dr. Lowell was an aloof sort of man, but he had apparently convinced himself that the police were almost as much to blame as his students. The whole undergraduate body had a feeling of warmth for Dr. Lowell which wasn't matched until years later when they used to see him helping his blind spaniel across Massachusetts Avenue by hooking his umbrella through the dog's collar."  p.146 (This was before he was Harvard's president, of course.) EEng (talk) 20:35, 13 October 2015 (UTC)
thread_title:  Misc source(s) and quote(s) 

message: ...the gentleman who loathed gentlemanly C's...
:Whatever is this supposed to mean? In any case, the final para of the lede is not represented in the main article, and should be deleted. Valetude (talk) 23:58, 17 February 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  Lede, final para