ENRAGED. Perfectly and succinctly does that describe how I feel. In this day and age, being the angry black man is something maligned and demonized by popular culture. It seems, now, inappropriate to be that ill-adjusted malcontent who, instead of being the determiner of his own fate, would rather blame his failures and inadequacies on society and the wrongs imposed upon him by white people. But in light of recent events, a bit of righteous indignation seems appropriate - if not warranted - by the ignorant, obtuse and racist arguments proposed by Kimberly Liu in her March 1 column "Taking color out of the equation" and Anthony Dick in his March 20 column "Phantoms of racism."
Dick wrote that those who were offended by the Medallion Party are "over-eager" activists resorting to "conjuring up phantoms of racial oppression to alleviate their own uneasy idleness." Racism is neither dead nor has its presence diminished since the Civil Rights Movement; rather, only the nature of its expression and the tone through which it is manifested have changed because the law caused it to be. Instead of maligning Tim Lovelace's March 7 column "Racist revelry," we should applaud him for his fortitude and heart to call racism for what it is. I find white trash, pimps-n-hos, and Medallion parties equally offensive and bigoted because they only perpetuate stereotypes and heighten negative images we have of each other.
One other point Dick misses is that the purpose of an activist is to offend the status quo. He states making a cry of racism for "such a non-issue" would cause would-be activists to "lose credibility with the majority of the public." Setting out on the warpath against small issues of racism, non-issues of racism, and large issues of racism is not a matter of credibility, but one of truth. When an act of racism or bigotry is committed against someone, all should be offended because racism limits what we can say of the whole of society, injures the personhood of our entire culture.
My indignation is made stronger and more belligerent by the statements made by Kimberly Liu. She made the argument that Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have outlived their purpose because we live in a "fully integrated society," and these institutions stand as hallmarks of segregation. Simply put, we do not live in a fully integrated society. To assume such would mean that all persons would have equal access to all resources, all places and all institutions; this has not, nor has been, the legacy of the United States or of the University.
To assert that HBCUs and black fraternities have outlived their purpose illustrates the duality in the thinking of Liu and of society at-large. Such a comment also shows that ignorance is alive and well with respect to African-American culture and history. HBCUs are old and hallowed institutions of higher learning established in a time when talented, desiring and tenacious African-Americans wished to go to school but could not attend places such as the University. However, Liu believes that because the law says racism is evil and doesn't exist, HBCUs have outlived their usefulness. By the same ignorant rhetoric Liu uses, historically white institutions, with a legacy and well-documented history of turning away talented African-Americans, have outlived their purpose.
Liu's argument is racist, her point of view is racist, and, sadly, I don't think she realizes that. It appears as if she believes that black institutions and black fraternities and sororities are not as good as their white counterparts: She called them hallmarks of segregation. Liu implies that they should be dissolved, and African-Americans should run to white fraternities, sororities and institutions of higher learning. Because of this, it also appears that Liu believes that HBCUs and black fraternal organizations are poor imitations of the white original. Even a person with a rudimentary understanding of U.S. history knows that white institutions of higher learning - like the University - and fraternal organizations fought tooth-and-nail to keep themselves all white (and all male). In essence, the counter-argument I present is that the true hallmarks of segregation and racism are places like the University.
I am not a malcontent. I am upset. I am hurt. Above all, I am disappointed. Somehow I expected better of my peers at the University. Perhaps many do not know the power of words, and the tremendous impact they have. The words that I have read, and now write in opposition to, bear the additional sting of ignorance and bigotry. Nothing is more disheartening to know that at an institution of higher learning, people will leave ignorant of the complexity and diversity of African-American culture, and of the social and political history of race in America.
(Adrian Holloway is a fourth-year College student.)
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