See what the “Western Whitehouse” has to offer and how it is helping spread conservatism from coast to coast.
Find a motivational speaker who will energize your school, challenge the Left, and empower young leaders.
Providing a visible presence for the Conservative Movement and encouraging them to speak out.
Seeking to reinvigorate the respect for free enterprise and entrepreneurship in America.
Training aspiring journalists in the values of responsible, balanced, and accurate reporting.
Providing students with the tools and resources to advance conservatism at high schools and college campuses.
Our seminars are pushing the conservative movement forward and bringing in the best speakers in the nation.
Take a look at the calendar to see where our upcoming events are going to be and how you can attend.
See what programs you can get involved with to make a difference for America and Young Americans Foundation.
Throughout the year we host roundtables and conferences at “the western White House”, the Reagan Ranch.
Join us at our HQ for regular conferences and half day events.
Take a look at roundtables, conferences, and regional events for our supporters.
Students are the future of our nation. We believe that investing time in conservative discourse will strengthen that future.
Providing a visible presence for the Conservative Movement and encouraging them to speak out.
Providing students with the tools and resources to advance conservatism at high schools and college campuses.
On a nearly weekly basis, you can find a YAF student event going on around the country. Tune in here to to find out about upcoming events!
Over the decades, millions of students have been a part of YAF. Stay informed on what your peers are up to!
Check out the directory of all of the great alumni who have taken part in YAF over the years!
Are you an alumni that’s not in our directory? Sign up here and receive some of the great benefits of being part of this national network!
Our supporters are the bedrock of our organization. We offer many ways to contribute to the future.
We hold our organization to the highest standards. We think you’ll think so as well!
We offer many different ways that you can give. Find out more about them here.
Got questions about supporting YAF? Find your answers here.
No need to worry If you missed a speaker at an event, we have a large video library for you to browse through and view.
Since the beginning, our publications have been at the heart of our mission. Browse the archives of The New Guard and Libertas here.
View our Mission and find out more information about what Young America’s Foundation is.
Take at look how we have changed over the years, impacted conservatism, and supported our young leaders.
We have the most diligent, hardest working group of individuals at YAF. Feel free to see who is on our team.
See our list of current openings or how to be a part of our internship programs.
To maintain our standard of excellence, we are as open and transparent with the public as possible.
If you are unsure about something, take a look at our frequently asked questions to see if it can be answered.
Authored By New Guard Staff
June 20, 2016
A proposal submitted to the University of Wisconsin recommends “perpetrators of an incident of hate or bias” undergo “evidenced based psychological interventions” that could take the form of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, according to the school’s website.
After campus leftists protested at the school this spring, the university crowdsourced, “ideas for how to systematically elevate […] standards of behavior and conduct across our entire community to ensure that our campus is welcoming and supportive to all.”
More than 100 proposals were submitted and posted to the school’s “Campus Climate” website.
A “two tiered program” outlined in Proposal 16, submitted by an area psychologist, recommended 1) students take a course on bias (including the “emotional impact of oppression”) and 2) students accused of perpetrating hate and bias incidents undergo therapy, described in the proposal as “evidence based psychological evaluations.” The proposal suggests Acceptance and Commitment Therapy as a potential prescription for the students identified as hateful and biased. Psychology Today describes Acceptance and Commitment Therapy as a type of psychotherapy that can be helpful in treating anxiety, depression, and other psychological disorders.
The fact that a psychologist would provide it as an example of possible treatments for “perpetrators of bias” is concerning.
If you’ve paid close attention to the rhetoric of campus protestors in recent years, you know that their standards for what constitutes hate and bias typically include simple expressions of conservative beliefs. It’s understandable for universities to be concerned about legitimate acts of hate. Unfortunately, however, anti-bias policies encourage conservative witch hunts and distract from serious racism. It’s disconcerting that a psychologist would recommend students identified by the university undergo actual psychological therapy for “perpetrating bias incidents.”
In fact, a glance at the university’s official “definition of bias and hate” proves that “bias incidents” at UW-Madison could include making jokes about “gender identity.”
Definition of Bias/Hate: Single or multiple acts toward an individual, group, or their property that have a negative impact and that one could reasonably conclude are based upon actual or perceived age, race, color, creed, religion, gender identity or expression, ethnicity, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, political affiliation, marital status, spirituality, cultural, socio-economic status, or any combination of these or other related factors. Bias/Hate incidents include, but are not limited to: slurs, degrading language, epithets, graffiti, vandalism, intimidation, symbols, and harassment that are directed toward or affect the targeted individual or team. Incidents of Bias or Hate contribute to a hostile campus environment and can occur even if the act itself is unintentional or delivered as a joke, prank, or having humorous intent.
If the system recommended by the proposal were implemented, students could literally be forced to undergo a psychological evaluation and therapy for joking about socio-economic status, political affiliation, gender expression, and other topics.
Of course, this is just one of 107 proposals submitted by members of the community and the university is not obligated to adopt any part of it at all. But it’s still remarkable and indicative of the times we live in that an actual psychologist is recommending therapy as a remedy for bias incidents.
The school also announced this month it is requiring students to undergo “cultural competency training” on “identity, culture and micro-aggressions.” Clearly, there’s no telling where UW’s radical administration will stop.
Jake Regner, chairman of Young Americans for Freedom at UW-Madison, responded to the new training by telling The New Guard: ” The bottom line is that I highly doubt that this training program is going to help students be ‘culturally competent’ at all. I think that’s a very misleading title designed to get students to buy in to the typical leftist indoctrination.”
The chapter is prepared to attend the so-called “cultural competency” training and has every intention of fighting back should the university attempt to implement any radical proposals.