Tim Bueler, 17, founder of San Francisco-area Rancho Cotate High School's new conservative club, says that teachers have refused to protect him even as Hispanic students openly threatened him. Groups of Hispanic students have allegedly surrounded him, blocked him in the hallway, talked of finding someone to beat him up, and called him "racist" and "white boy." (Washington Times, 12-30-03)

He said teachers have joined in the name-calling, using terms like "Nazi," "a bunch of bigots," and "neoconservative wing-nuts who call themselves Americans" to describe Bueler or his club. The school district has launched an investigation.

The 50-member club has hosted speakers from California Eagle Forum and the National Rifle Association and published a newsletter in which the student's article appeared. After a presentation by Orlean Koehle of California Eagle Forum, a science teacher wrote a three-page rebuttal and circulated it to every teacher at the school. Besides attacking Eagle Forum, the rebuttal stated that the speaker had no facts and that the club is "reactionary" and gets its "mistruths" from Michael Savage and Rush Limbaugh, according to Koehle.

"Teachers, administrators, even our county superintendent are still trying to say that there is no liberal bias in our public schools," said Koehle. "I am actually thankful for [the rebuttal] for it is more evidence of the liberal bias that does exist in our public schools and gives more reason to believe in the need for a conservative club on every campus so another viewpoint can be expressed."