The countdown begins now. Halloween is over, cold weather is on its way (trust me, Mother Nature’s hot flash won’t last long) and the season of good cheer, celebration and family feuds over turkey dinners is fast approaching. The falling of the leaves not only marks the transition to the holiday season, but also for college students around the country, ’tis the season of registration.
For two weeks, we frantically search for classes to make a schedule that, if we’re lucky, doesn’t equate to academic death. It seems we go to extreme measures to find that perfect class, even going to the extent of bribing our friends who have earlier registration times to hold classes that are sure to fill up (Human Sexuality anyone?).
But while scanning your DARS report, making sure that “Clap for Credit” or that second yoga class hasn’t put you too far behind schedule, you stop and do a double take when you stumble across the ethnic studies requirement. You know what I’m talking about: It’s that three-credit requirement you’ve been avoiding since SOAR.
Why is it we avoid fulfilling these credits? Is it because most of the classes don’t seem to have any pertinence to most majors? Or perhaps it is because “American West from 1850” doesn’t sound nearly as exciting as “Atomic and Quantum Physics?” Well, if you ask me, neither sounds particularly enjoyable, but you get the point. I would venture to guess that perhaps the underlying cause of all of these excuses is a hesitation to learn about the “culture and contributions of persistently marginalized racial or ethnic groups in the United States and equip students to respond constructively to issues connected with our pluralistic society and the global community,” which is what UW’s undergraduate catalog specifies as the goal of this requirement.
The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents reported last year that 10.8 percent of the undergraduate population — or 4,554 students — was comprised of international students. Approximately an eighth of all the undergraduate students here are black, Asian-American, Hispanic or Native American. Our student body represents a diverse mix of cultures and backgrounds from all over the world.
One would think with a campus and country as diverse as ours, we would be a little more gung-ho about taking a class that would help us understand both the differences and similarities of all our cultures. But we’re not. A certain complacency has settled upon our generation. Why worry about things like racism and prejudice when there are no people marching in Washington D.C. for civil rights? Right?
Wrong. Just because students are not protesting mistreatment of minorities on State Street on a daily basis does not mean that we, as students at an increasingly diverse campus, shouldn’t make an effort to learn more about the racial injustices occurring throughout our society. The absence of radical movements does not mean that a problem does not exist.
The election of a black president does not erase a history of mistreatment of blacks in the U.S. The stereotypes that all Asians watch anime and all Americans are loud and obnoxious are still widely accepted. Ethnic studies courses are going to challenge our preconceived notions of the world and the people who inhabit it. The topics of race, religion, prejudice and inequality are touchy subjects, but the classroom is the best arena for students to learn about one another.
It’s not a secret that racism and prejudices still exist within the boundaries of our perfectly manicured lawns and throughout the stately halls of the oldest buildings on this campus. Biases and racism will never be completely abolished; however, it is within the power of this generation to better understand and accept the beauty and complexity of living in a country where different races and cultures live and thrive together.
As you’re signing up for next semester’s classes, take the initiative to register for one of the many courses that fall under the ethnic studies category. Don’t consider the ethnic studies requirement as an obligation. These classes may not seem relevant to your major and the topics might sound a little foreign, but you’ll soon recognize the value of what you learn from them will stay with you longer than any Shakespearian sonnet or mathematical theorem.
Chelsea Lawliss ([email protected]) is a sophomore intending to major in journalism.
