When I first heard that Newt Gingrich had criticized President Obama¹ for apologizing after Qurans were accidentally burned on a military base, I thought I had misheard the news report.   Because tossing a Quran out with the rubbish is such a disrespectful way to treat the scriptural text, I could not imagine not apologizing.  From what I gather from news reports, no insult was intended by the burning.  Yet an offensive act took place; an act that merited an apology.

As I have matured, I have found that it is both easier to take responsibility for my behavior and to apologize when I am in error.  Unlike Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and others whom have criticized Obama, I do not see issuing an apology to be a sign of weakness.  Instead, the moral fiber it takes to apologize can only be done from a position of strength.

Several years ago, during a conference, I suggested to a student that the best course of action was for me to return her research paper to her ungraded so that she could check her documentation before I formally evaluated it.  She turned down my offer informing me that there was nothing wrong with her documentation.  She failed the assignment and then filed a complaint with the Dean because I had graded her unfairly.

After reading my response to her complaint, the student sent an e-mail to the Dean in which she took responsibility for her sloppy documentation and apologized for the complaint.  Her apology was not a sign of weakness.  Rather, she demonstrated strength of character not often seen in students who fail assignments because of their own poor decisions.  As a result, I worked with her to improve.

Santorum’s argument that, “I don’t think the president should apologize for something that was clearly inadvertent”² implies that you only need to apologize when you sin because a sinful action is one where you know that something is wrong but do it anyway.  While one cannot inadvertently sin, it is possible to inadvertently commit an act that requires an apology.

I try to create a culture in my classroom where it is appropriate to take responsibility for one’s actions and then to apologize even for an inadvertent action such as accidentally citing a piece of information inaccurately.  Because I take responsibility for my actions, my students do not view me as weak.  In fact, I have found that I am more respected now than I was when I was less willing to admit my mistakes and to make amends for them.  It is also my experience that by creating a culture of responsibility, my students are more likely to take responsibility for their actions and the general climate in the classroom improves.

As part of his criticism, Gingrich argued that the President “is consistently apologizing to people who do not deserve the apology of the president of the United States period.”³  Essentially, Gingrich is arguing that there is some type of special dispensation that absolves us of our own wrong doing as long as we are doing wrong to others who are guilty of worse wrongs than us.

Unlike Gingrich, when I have done wrong I do not judge the quality of the student or other individual before issuing an apology.   Recently, I misreported some information concerning an individual who was being hateful.  When I realized my error, I clarified the mistake with my colleagues and apologized for the error in my initial report.  Clearly, the individual’s behavior was despicable.  However, her conduct was irrelevant in terms of my responsibility to right the wrong I had committed.   Ironically to people who believe as Santorum and Gingrich do, my apology actually strengthened my credibility.

Gingrich might be correct in his concern that “This president has gone so far at appeasing radical Islamists that he is failing in his duty as commander in chief.”  But Obama’s apology does not provide adequate evidence to support this claim.  Santorum is equally erroneous when he argues that no apology is necessary if the action is inadvertent.

By apologizing, President Obama acted from a position of moral strength.   Promoting the idea that individuals should personally accept responsibility for their actions is something that we need at all levels of society and the President should be applauded for setting an example that we can  emulate.  Imagine what our classrooms would look like if we followed the Gingrich/Santorum example of moral conduct?

¹I heard the initial report on the radio and cannot identify the exact source. However, this video is consistent with the remarks I heard.

²Santorum quote taken from David Eldridge’s “Santorum: Obama’s Apology Showed ‘Weakness.’” Washington Times. 26 February 2012.

³Gingrich quotes taken from “Gingrich: Obama Apology for Quran Burning in Afghanistan an ‘Outrage’ in Light of Deaths.”  Washington Post. Accessed 25 February 2012.