As fun as these arguments on affirmative action, “inclusive excellence” and Charlie Weis’ cup size are, it’s high time we step off campus and examine the attitudes of the larger Madison community. Much like the university, the city of Madison is overwhelmingly white, with Caucasians accounting for around 84 percent of the population. However, while students and administrators appear to discuss race in at least semi-civil terms, these discussions turn to blue-blooded American paranoia when you start engaging the greater city. Think The Badger Herald is racist? Look at our readers.

In an Editorial Board statement discussing the Kollege Klub suspension, online observers were treated to this Shakespearian take on downtown: “It’s not racist, it’s reality folks. See, some of us grew up seeing things as they are. … Look at the State Journal sometime. Read crime reports. Look at how long Allied Drive has been a problem for Madison. It’s proven by crime data. You look at the thugs that lurk around campus, in the bars like the KK or the Pub. Tell me they’re white or Asian. You’d be lying.”

It may be naive, but I have a hard time attributing this statement to a UW student. For one, it reeks of that old man, “get off my lawn” mentality. Besides, I think most students know to avoid the Wisconsin State Journal.

In another article on (unnecessary) Madison police spending, IP hash 33ee4809 mused that “maybe the author needs to spend a little less time on campus and a little more on Allied Drive or East Washington. Spend some time away from his safe zone where he thinks Madison is a college town and the police exist to rein in underage drinking.” Thanks 33, and let me apologize on behalf of The Badger Herald, Scott Van Pelt, CNN, Wikipedia, my grandparents and Luke Wilson for misguidedly thinking Madison, Wis., is a college town.

Beyond the terrifying levels of ignorance — and probably xenophobia — that ooze from these comments, they both invoke Madison’s favorite anecdotal scapegoat: Allied Drive. Like the old Robert Taylor projects in Chicago or that Tusken Raider neighborhood on Tatooine, Allied Drive is Exhibit A when Madisonians want to complain about how those darn minorities are destroying the city.

Of course, that’s hardly the case. Allied Drive, while an area desperately in need of redevelopment and better landlords, is not causing Madison to crumble. But these days, complaining about race is the cool thing to do, and because Madison isn’t big or trendy enough to have a Compton or Harlem — and because ignoring the data suggesting that Madison is incredibly safe for its size is an easy way out — we have to create our own “ghetto.” It’s like SimCity for racists.

The regrettable reality is every town likes to think it has a crime problem, and few things breed notions of race-based discrimination faster than the perception of crime. In Madison’s case, most people actually buy into it, which leads to Michael Richards-esque Internet rants and a county jail system so racially disproportionate it makes the 1966 Kentucky basketball team look multicultural. How are we supposed to feel good about cultural progress on campus when townies with computers keep telling us we’re living in New Jack City?

Sure, a fair number of UW students come from expensive schools in high-end suburbs and could probably use “some time away from their safe zones” to give them a more comprehensive understanding of their new home city. However, there is also a strong percentage of students who come from cities like Los Angeles, Milwaukee or New York, where murder rates can reach double digits in months and where crimes and gangs are truly a high-priority problem. To suggest we have no understanding is foolish when so many in the city of Madison refuse to attempt to see with a greater perspective.

To paraphrase a good friend of mine, maybe some in Madison need to spend a little less time in Neighborhood Watch meetings and a little more reading books or traveling. Spend some time away from their bunkers where they think Madison is Mad Max’s Thunderdome and minorities exist only to disrupt your way of life.

Now if only I knew my IP hash.

Sean Kittridge ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in journalism.