OPINION & EDITORIAL
Letters to the Editor - 2/15/02
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Friday, February 15, 2002
It is not surprising to open up the student newspapers and find ignorant diatribes on the merits of affirmative action. After four years here in Madison, I should no longer expect other people to understand the complex situations that make programs such as affirmative action necessary, although imperfect.
Neither should I be surprised to read pretentious editorials that fearfully resemble a transcendence of the historical “noble savage and enlightened white” literary trope.
Regardless, I am not a gung-ho supporter of affirmative action, yet I am compelled to retort against the fallacies presented in Anna Gould’s recent article on the issue.
Gould’s central theme seems to be that affirmative action itself is the vital problem, the actual source of why “African Americans on this campus think they are treated like second-class citizens,” and why “white students stare down a black student in class.”
Gould presents the grand solution to all the wrongs and racism on this campus and the country, yes, she has solved this peculiar mystery! It is not racism that makes the poor African American student feel “watched” and it is not ignorance which would compel certain higher-ups to doctor an admissions photo — this whole time, we have been wrong!
Gould is quite adamant about her findings; the problem is “a symptom of what affirmative action does to a group of people,” not white racism. In a way, she is right.
However, Gould does not once question the reasons why programs like affirmative action were put into place. There is no reminder in her article, or even a lingering thought, of the numerous institutions which are still in place that constantly keep people of color (minority is such a demeaning term) in a certain “group.”
People of color are not fools. The program which Gould so easily attacks for its created “barriers” and “hurdles” is still in place in this university because of pre-existing barriers and hurdles. One cannot expect a child being taught his ABCs in a bathroom (yes, but they sincerely boarded up the urinals) to be on the same level as Gould. This is an extreme example, but one which validates the necessity for “something” to be done.
It is not enough to say affirmative action is faulted. Although this is true, we should not rip down the only institution that has helped people of color graduate college and succeed. There are programs such as the Academic Advancement Program, which act as a resource to students who may not be able to afford tutoring. These programs are vital and cannot be outlawed.
The solution to this “problem,” contrary to Gould, is not to outlaw affirmative action. Perhaps if the people and institutions of this country did not care about race and saw things through the enlightened eyes of Gould, then this faulted system would not be necessary.
Yet, for the time being, how many of you truly feel the ground is leveled? You may not like affirmative action, but isn’t something necessary to balance the ingrained ignorance which unfortunately plagues so many?
Unfortunately, we cannot put people in other people’s shoes. One can only hope for certain people to open their eyes and notice there is a problem here that nobody is talking about.
Matthew Fernandez-Konigsberg, UW senior
