Wrong idea
Universities can't balance minority scale
Look
around campus.
Does
the brightness sting your eyes?
Throughout
Turlington Plaza, inside the Reitz Union and in every classroom, white kids
conquer the crowd.
Hispanics
are almost 11 percent of the student body.
Blacks
are about 7 percent.
Asians
are less than 7 percent.
And
the American Indians can't even make it up to half a percent.
That's
probably the fault of our white ancestors and their smallpox.
But we
know Florida is more diverse than that.
Miami
is basically Cuba. African Americans make up much more of our state than 7
percent.
The
question is: Should a university mimic the demographics of society?
At the
UF Board of Trustees meeting Friday, President Bernie Machen stressed the need
to increase minority enrollment if the university is to obtain its goal of
becoming a Top 10 public research institution.
The
Editorial Board argues that this isn't the university's job and doesn't have
much to do with academics and research.
It has
to do with society's flaws as a whole.
If not
enough minorities apply, how are we to balance our enrollment? And if Florida's
poorer residents, who are predominantly minorities, are getting poor education
from kindergarten through high school, how does a university right that wrong?
It
doesn't. Nothing is fixed at this stage in the game.
We'd
argue that this is a problem cemented before universities even enter the
picture.
Primary
and secondary schools are incredibly segregated. Poor neighborhoods get the
worst teachers because the more qualified teachers have the choice of a cushier
job.
Schools
that have inferior FCAT grades receive less funding and support, and those
schools tend to be in poor areas.
If a
minority student is the first in his or her family to have the option of
college, help in applying for schools and scholarships is scarce. Counselors
are usually overworked and useless.
We
know this situation doesn't apply to every minority student.
We
also know there are excellent minority students.
These
students are not denied access to any university because of their race. In fact
they're warmly welcomed.
Universities
fervently recruit them because they fill both requirements: They're good
students, and they raise the minority percentage, which looks good for the
university.
But
the percentage of qualified minority students is very different from the
percentage of minorities.
A
university cannot right this wrong. A university is for a select group of
people.
Yes,
that's right. A university, especially one that's headed for the Top 10, is not
for everybody, public or not.
Everyone
gets into an elementary school, a middle school and a high school. That's where
underprivileged minority students are wronged.
UF
does try to get to minority students early with its Alliance program, which
prepares students in "struggling" high schools for college.
It's
not a university's job, but it's a good idea.
In
February, President Bush proposed to cut funding to Upward Bound, a college
preparatory program that helps low-income students get into college. Teachers
and tutors in the program provide individual attention and additional
education.
This
program is a step in the right direction. Cutting its funding hurts the entire
education spectrum.
But
the answer is not for a university to solve.
That
shortchanges minorities and education alike.
Letter to the Editor
Cartoon correctly brings issues forward
It's
used generously by the black rappers we listen to. It's used flippantly by
black actors and comedians in the shows we watch. Hell, it can even be
overheard while walking through Turlington Plaza. Yet when a skinny white
cartoonist uses a derivative of the word to make a point in a political
cartoon, it's labeled ignorant and derogative.
I'm
sorry, but the Black Student Union's complaint has absolutely no merit, and
their response is nothing more than a knee-jerk, calcified, obligatory
reaction.
If
members of BSU are offended by the use of this word by others at UF, I have two
words for them: Charlie Murphy.
When
Charlie Murphy, a comedian from "Chappelle's Show," came to UF last
semester, he used the word several times and even made jokes regarding Muslims.
Where
was BSU? Rolling on the floor laughing?
I
don't blame them. I was laughing too.
However,
unlike the various comedians who use the word, Marlette's brilliant cartoon was
not meant to make people laugh. It was meant to draw attention to the absurdity
of West's remarks regarding President Bush by having Condi Rice say a phrase
that is completely out of character for her. Yet, it's a phrase that West and
other rappers know all too well.
Marlette
and the editorial staff used the word in the right context and in the right environment
and should be applauded for bringing these sensitive issues to the forefront.
Brian
Chapman
UF
alumnus
Darts & Laurels
Another
week is over.
Why
does it feel like a hundred years?
Maybe
it's because these pages have been getting a lot of action lately.
The
faculty union won a hard-fought battle, FEMA Director Michael Brown quit, and
diversity issues came to the forefront.
The
Editorial Board is seriously ready for an ice-cold beer and a smooth drag from
a hookah. A personal belly dancer might be nice, too.
But we
still have some catching up to do.
We let
our bubbling fury and idealistic righteousness get the best of us last week and
gave Student Government all our DARTS & LAURELS space.
It
didn't even work. That $1.5 million is as good as the Reitz Union's. So long,
Bandshell.
After
a big chunk of that money redecorates the Rion Ballroom, the Editorial Board is
going to hold its meeting there, complete with caviar and champagne.
This
week, however, we're going to lay off SG.
In
fact, we're tired of fighting in general.
Can't
we all get in a circle, join hands and sing "kumbaya"?
We'll
bring the hot dogs and s'mores.
Wait.
Who are we kidding? We love to wrestle.
So
gather your peace pipes, put on your hemp necklaces and gather 'round as we
begin this week's edition of...
Darts
& Laurels
We'll
start off lovey-dovey by handing a
we-love-you-dad-even-though-we-sometimes-throw-a-fuss LAUREL to UF
President Bernie Machen for acknowledging the Alligator's independence and
value at Tuesday's Student Senate meeting.
Amid
calls to kick the paper off campus due to anger over a certain editorial
cartoon, Machen said he wouldn't consider the plea because he believes the
Alligator serves a purpose and is an effective way to communicate with the
students.
Although
he agreed with those who found the cartoon offensive, he said he couldn't
control the Alligator (we're independent) and wouldn't want to if he could.
It's
good to know our president values a free, uncensored press.
And
maybe that press does help get some positive things done with its political
commentary.
We pin
a we-knew-you-guys-were-filled-with-creativity-just-waiting-to-explode LAUREL
on Student Government for dropping the $50,000 towel idea and replacing it with
a $9,000 solution.
Instead
of paying for the purchase and laundering of towels for the Southwest
Recreation Center, officials have decided to buy alcohol wipes for sweaty
machines and bodies.
The
money will come out of the Recreational Sports budget.
To set
everything right in the world, now all we have to do is save our schoolchildren
from being brainwashed.
A
recent court ruling has alleviated our worries.
We
toss a thanks-for-not-waffling-and-actually-doing-your-job LAUREL to
District Court Judge Lawrence K. Karlton for ruling that it is unconstitutional
to stop class time so public-school children can recite "under God"
in the Pledge of Allegiance.
The
issue was last left at the U.S. Supreme Court, which evaded a ruling through a
technicality: The man bringing the issue to court didn't have primary custody
of his daughter and thus didn't have the right to argue on her behalf.
We
think the whole pledge should be put to rest. It's archaic and kind of creepy.
But
we're not going to waste our time on the cause.
So we
come right back and throw a
please-focus-on-parenting-and-stop-arguing-about-the-insignificant-parts-of-your-child's-
education DART at Michael A. Newdow, the father who first brought the
case to court back in 2002. He's also behind the current case and has recruited
more parents.
Newdow
is way too obsessive. If we were his children, we'd convert to Christianity
just to piss him off.
But
we're just controversial like that.
Selective protest on cartoon casts
doubt on true convictions
By Jim Ellis
Speaking Out
Cracka',
please. Something stinks my way, and it smells like a sweaty, disingenuous
protest.
The
gripe several students and administrators voiced in the days following Andy
Marlette's infamous editorial cartoon, which was published in the Alligator
last week and featured Kanye West and Condoleezza Rice, is wrong on several
levels.
In the
cartoon, Rice said, "Nigga, please" to West, who was portrayed as
playing the race card, presumably for his comments during a fundraising event
for Hurricane Katrina victims in which he said, "George Bush doesn't care
about black people."
First,
the Alligator, like any newspaper, serves many purposes, not the least of which
is to entertain its readers.
In the
vast cultural experience called entertainment, there are many things that
offend many people.
For
the record, the film "Garden State" offended the hell out of me.
But
take West for example. I counted the word "nigga" six times in his
latest Top-5 release, "Gold Digger."
Based
on this song alone, those protesting the Alligator for its word choice would
have to apply six times that energy toward the rap prot駩 - or risk
looking insincere.
And
when one acknowledges that "Gold Digger" is reaching tens of millions
of listeners and is being heard over and over again, the uproar toward West
should drown out those protesting Marlette's creative expression all the more.
West
will perform at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center in a few weeks. Will the Black
Student Union line University Avenue with picket signs calling for the rapper
to retract his racist rhetoric? It's doubtful.
Second,
the n-word is such a part of the urban American lexicon that to blame Marlette
is to blame the inner city experience in which the word finds approval.
Marlette is simply reacting to a cultural truth.
Notice
the cartoon doesn't depict a white person. It was a black woman speaking to a
black man.
The
Alligator is the messenger, not the message.
The
1997 movie "Jackie Brown," written by Quentin Tarantino, a white man,
featured an n-word spouting black female in the lead. Remember Pam Grier?
Instead
of a revolt, Grier inspired applause as a strong role model for minority women,
and all women for that matter. She was even nominated for an Image Award by the
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for her performance
in the film.
I
don't figure Condi will get the same treatment for Marlette's work. Do you?
UF
Vice President of Student Affairs Patricia Telles-Irvin said in an open letter
Friday it was clear there was "a need for further education" with
regard to expressing opinions "civilly and with respect."
Oh, so
that's why UF is bringing West to Gainesville. In case Marlette didn't
enlighten the UF community adequately, there would be a more thorough
opportunity for "further education" from the hip-hop star whose debut
release was titled "The College Dropout."
And
let's be clear. The Alligator is an independent entity, not officially
associated with UF. The O'Dome, however, is not.
I hate
racial remarks, and I might even endorse Telles-Irvin's position if it were
genuine.
But
it's not.
If you
choose to be selective in your protests - finding fault with some and not
others - don't expect to win wide support.
It has
to be all or nothing.
So
when you become true to your convictions, call me. And when that day comes,
I'll stand with you. And so will countless others who hate words that divide.
Jim
Ellis is a journalism senior.