It isn't about race, it's about ignorance?

I don't think so. Professor Leonard Kaplan's alleged comments about Hmong have everything to do with race. The pat on the wrist from Ken Davis, Dean of UW Law School, also, has absolutely everything to do with race. In fact, this whole incident thus far has been yet another poignant example of how racism is addressed (or rather not addressed) in our society: professor allegedly makes racist statements, student response is doubted by community (really, what do they know?), college speech codes protect hateful statements (which are "pertinent to the class", of course).

In light of the reality that most of the world suffers because of our society's unwillingness to acknowledge and address white supremist racism, our community therefore allows and makes every attempt to justify the highly racist statements spouted by tenured professors such as Kaplan. This is precisely why we attribute what student reaction there was to "heightened edginess" of the Hmong community, as if student reaction to racist speech came from temporary and unfounded hysteria. Or better yet, this whole thing is a "misunderstanding". Highly doubtful that law students have the ability to recognize hateful speech. What is this? Racism as enigma? Since when has it become confusing to identify racism?

Oh yeah, since we've stopped talking about it. The attempt to discredit and write off student concerns and allegations is disheartening. Rather than seize this opportunity to foster college-wide discussions, the administration tries to hush and muffle the tender, rearing head of RACISM. The days of fraternities holding 'slave auctions' in Madison are over, right? That outrageously racist party at Clemson University earlier this month-surely an exceptional occurrence. There is no racism here. UW (and surrounding Madison) may be 85 percent white, but we're nice whites, you know, the non-racist kind.

UW's academic free speech code may very well protect racist lectures, but this does not protect the speakers of those lectures from the student and community imposed consequences (lest we act). Our "marketplace of ideas" should not be hospitable for hate speech. There were nearly 9,000 reported victims of hate crimes in America in 2005, with undoubtedly thousands more incidents unreported. We are in the midst of a highly racist war, our empire committing millions of hate crimes in the world. Racism is engrained, normalized, and omniscient in Madison, in America. White privilege is a blinding veil wrapped around our heads. It is about time that here, in our own community, we stand in solidarity with our students, Hmong or otherwise, and hold teachers accountable for perpetuating racism.

Monica Goncze
Campus Antiwar Network member