Dear Dr. Evans,
This is Preeti -- Havrede has been forwarding me your emails and in turn I have
been forwarding them to other organizations that I think would like to read
your letters (AASU [Asian American Student Union], ACTION committee - the
political student group associated with Asian Pacific American activism on
campus, friends of mine in NAACP and arts/activism groups). I was hoping
that I could be added to your list directly. From the bottom of my heart,
I love your work for us students on this campus.
peace,
Preeti Sharma
Thank you Dr. Evans.
Joe
Joe Goldberg
Student Body President
University of Florida, Trustee
300-54 JWRU Room 305
PO Box 118505
Gainesville, FL 32611-8505
(352) 392-1665 ext. 328
President@sg.ufl.edu
I think you did an excellent
job of articulating all
of the problems with the Alligator. Between the
overall meaning of the cartoon, the history of the
cartoonist, and the reaction of the cartoonist and the
paper, it's hard to discuss the issues behind it in a
concise way. If I had to pick out one component,
however, one that should seem blatantly wrong to
everyone, it is the use of the n-word.
Sure, they have the right, but White people should
know better than to use that word in any context - it
symbolizes 300 years of oppression. Blacks lost a lot
to Whites during that time - freedom, family, land,
jobs, lives. As Katrina clearly demonstrates, this is
not a history lesson. You'd think that after all
Blacks lost - continue to lose - that we wouldn't find
it a huge sacrifice to lose one small word from our
vocabulary - out of decency and respect.
Rebecca Rockefeller
(Former student, Brown University)
Dear Dr. Evans - Sandy Chiu, president of the UF AASU,
forwarded
me your excellent, poignant and very necessary piece about
the lack of
journalistic standards which seem to govern The Alligator,
and I just want to
tell you how very moved I was to read your writing. It just
reminded me of
the problems I have faced for decades as a person of color,
a Chinese
American who grew up in Arizona in the 40's. I was at UF at
the first of
this month to address the AASU, and several of the students
were sharing
with me their frustrations about The Alligator, because --
since I was a
Journalism major at ASU -- I am very interested in college
publications. UF is
blessed to have a professor as conscientious as you! I
encourage you to keep
up the good fight, Dr. Evans; somehow, I know you will. I
hope we can
meet someday and have a proper chat! In the meantime, God
bless you, and thank
you for that eye-opening, wonderfully composed piece! --Jack
Ong
www.jackong.com & www.haingngorfoundation.org
9/17/05 5:18 PM
Greetings Mr. Ong,
your words of encouragement will mean a world of difference
for a
campus that is struggling to change. I am proud of and
humbled by
the small but growing number of students and our dedicated
Dean of
Minority Affairs who began the fight to uphold the standards
of a
quality university despite the overwhelming odds. There are
so
many wonderful things about UF and so many colleagues who
know
that we are headed in the right direction, but we, like the
nation
have SO far to go. It won't be easy, but we can get there if
all
people who want equity, justice, and excellence all work
together.
The Alligator and the campus community members who have been
complacent for so long or who are narrow-minded enough to
support
the current Alligator climate will soon realize that even
though
seemingly privileged on THIS campus, they actually are in
the
academic and scholarly minority. Again, thank you for taking
the
time to register your support. With a multitude of comments
like
these, the Alligator will be forced to change or will be
forced
out of business in Gainesville.
Regards,
Dr. Evans
Great to hear from you so quickly!
I felt so terrible for the AASU [Asian American Student Union] assembly - all
that work and not a word of coverage in their "own" campus paper.
Terrible journalism...at its typical, uninspired worst!
Have you guys notice how it is the same people hacking away
at
this subject. Give it a rest already. As for this Dr. Evans,
where is your supporting evidence that the majority of Gator
nation or the Gainesville community supporting her and BSU's
"revolutionary" effort to move Gainesville and UF
into the
future. If you haven't notice, Gainesville is predominately
white. So that would mean they don't give a thought whether
the
word nigga is used or not. Secondly, how can you hold
non-blacks
to a different standard. If a black person can use the term
nigga, why can't everyone else. Maybe you should start your
efforts within your own community first. Have you ever seen
a
Vietnamese calling another one Gook, or a Chinese person
calling
another chink. Futhermore, not every single blacks share the
same
feelings about this crusade of yours. It's rather ironic how
the
first person that started this movement is the same person
in a
group that uses the same word that he is so offended of. How
is
that? Could it be that because that same word came from the
mouth
of his niggas/dawgs/homies/boys? If you truly do think that
the
actions of the INDEPENDENT ALLIGATOR would in any way affect
the
ranking of UF. You are more of a fool than what your actions
have
lead me to believe. So please bury this whole issue and
start
educating your fellow brothers and sisters before you start
trying to educate others. The best way to teach someone is
by
showing them and letting them witness your actions.
[Name withheld]
UF Alumni
[Location withheld], Florida
Dear Dr. Evans,
The thing that frustrates me most is the reason/drive behind challenging
the Alligator. Yes I do agree that the Alligator may be distasteful at
times, and precise at others on certain subjects. But please do
understand that other newspaper also share the same problem. The
Alligator does have their rights to freedom of speech, and so does
everyone else. I myself do not use the n-word. I do not find a need to
use to, yet I have either been in conversations or heard it used in
conversation. That in no ways make it right. But the difference that I
have notice is that under most circumstances, blacks are offended when a
white person uses that word, and this is also statement used in one of
the feedbacks your sent. Why is that? Why is it ok for a black person to
use that term, but its consider racial when someone else uses it.
The best way to eliminate the n-word from the American vocabulary is to
start with the source. Why not start by asking black entertainers to
stop using that word? In a society that watches television more than
reading a book. Where do you think these kids are learning the n-word
from? Or how black people even portray themselves. You guys have the
wrong target in your watch dog crosshair at this time. If you think the
problem lies with this newspaper, you are wrong. Turn on your television
and turn to channels like UPN, and you'll see where the root lies.
The Independent Alligator staff are not the only one that doesn't have
respect for Machen. I believe AASU should be more focus on worrying
about how Machen and the board of trustees treats and ignore us rather
than how the newspaper may portray us to be. Who is the one brushing
aside our request for an institute of our own? Who is the one thinking
of the grand idea of combining La Casita, IBC, and every other minority
group into a multicultural center. Why should I have respect for this
man? A man who's main concern is drinking on campus.
As for those attached responses from people about the current situation.
First off, Goldberg doesn't count. He's student body president, so he
has to be nice and compassionate to everyone. If Bush truly doesn't like
black people, then why is he sending the relief efforts. He has to, it's
his image on the line. Ms. Rockefeller makes the typical black repsonse
to the use of the n-word. "Sure, they have the right, but White people
should know better than to use that word in any context - it symbolizes
300 years of oppression." The word "white" shouldn't even be in that
sentence. Katrina demonstrates a city with a black majority being
demolished. What did hurricane Francis demonstrates in Punta Gorda? Yes
black people have lost a lot, and all the government promised them was
40 acres and a mule, and they didn't even get that. "that we wouldn't
find it a huge sacrifice to lose one small word from our vocabulary -
out of decency and respect." Sorry Ms. Rockefeller, you are asking the
wrong crowd. Hopefully Dr. Evans, can provide you with the address to
Def Jam Records and ironically Roc-A-Fella Records.
Here's a quote for you, "everybody wants to be a nigga, by nobody wants
to be a nigga."
P.S. I just want to know how many of you guys that are challenging The
Independent Alligator about the use of the n-word will be going to Kayne
West's performance at the O'Dome.
[same Alumni, name withheld]
Dedicated Gator
Dear [same Alumni, Name withheld],
Thank you for your response. It's the middle of the night and I
have to write a paper so I hope I can respond to you in a coherent
manner. The points you raise in your email bring up the many
complex issues involved in talking about the history and usage of
racist terms like the n-word.
You are right to say there are alot of white people at UF, in
Gainesville, and in the US which could complicate establishing a
movement of sorts for racial solidarity as well as makes the
possibility of fighting various injustices seem grim. But when a
group of people come together in large numbers, like for this
issue, and show that they mean to fight racism (or any other
"ism") - i'd like to believe there is some hope. For what its
worth, because of certain efforts, there is a resolution happening
in senate now authored by many large student groups on campus that
asks for a boycott of the Alligator.
Your idea that certain Asian Americans dont denigrate each other
through terms like "gook" and "chink" which to you are
parallel to
"nigga" and therefore we have our community issues figured out,
unlike the homogenous black community, pits the two communities
against each other and makes it seem as if we Asian Americans are
definately better than the black community. Let's be careful and
not fall into the traps of the model minority myth and let's not
start implying that the black community is the only minority that
has (terminology) problems.
You are also right to point out that the term "nigga" is used by
people in the black community and that not all people within the
community share the idea that it is a denigrating word. But that
does not make the use of the word with a clear racist history
(white masters oppressing and calling black slaves "nigga") in the
Alligator, a paper for and by UF students, correct. Especially
when there is much education about the term at UF. Kanye's songs
or no Kanye's songs, a paper representing a diverse student group
should understand history and racism and language. I know the
Alligator is not the best newspaper and we all have our problems
with it, but when is it too much? Dr. Evans's argument also
states that the alligator did not provide any context for the
cartoon and did not talk about Hurricane Katrina (or the racism in
certain actions around it) as a main story until some days later.
As a student leader on this campus, I feel like educating people
of color communities about the racism on this campus and the
various fights against it is a part of my role and the mission
statements of the orgs I am involved in. The mission statement of
the ACTION committee and the Action listserve also promotes the
awareness of issues as such on campus. I am sorry you feel that
we need to give such discussion a rest but I am afraid I will not.
Feel free to email me personally at [personal email] and we can
continue this conversation. Additionally, one of Dr. Evans most
effective teaching methods is through example.
peace,
p