Diversity war of words heats up at Texas A&M

Houston Comical ^ | 12/3/03 | RON NISSIMOV

[LiteKeeper]

Aggie Conservatives get it right!

[DrewsDad]

In case you missed YCT's clever response:

November 30, 2003

Dear Mr. Byrne:

The statewide organization of the Young Conservatives of Texas is contacting you in regard to your ?Wednesday Weekly? of November 26, 2003, in which you suggest that the Texas A&M chapter of the Young Conservatives of Texas (A&M YCT), ?plays into the hands of those who recruit against? Texas A&M with respect to athletics and the general student population.

With all due respect, we resent your shameless and feeble attempt to shift responsibility for Texas A&M?s lackluster athletic season from yourself to A&M YCT. At the University of Texas at Austin, our chapter there held a similar bake sale and has been at least as active as the Texas A&M chapter over the last few years. Interestingly, the University of Texas athletic programs continue to excel.

Mr. Byrne, we find it ironic that you are unable to appreciate the importance of YCT's activism for equal rights given that the field of athletics in which you are ostensibly an expert provides a textbook example of the benefits that come from making decisions based entirely on merit and without regard to race. Whether it is Jim Brown, Arthur Ashe, Jackie Robinson, Dat Nguyen, Tom Flores, or Yao Ming, we have seen that racial minorities do not need special treatment to excel in sports, but simply a fair shot to compete on an even playing field. The same applies to academics.

While some of the most high profile college sports have racial demographics that do not mirror the population, we trust you would agree that the "underrepresentation" of whites, Hispanics, Asians, and other groups in sports such as football and basketball and the corresponding "overrepresentation" of blacks is solely due to merit-based criteria, not racial discrimination. If race was used as a factor in the composition of sports teams, clearly the quality of play would suffer, in addition to the unfairness that would be visited upon those athletes discriminated against on account of their skin color.

Mr. Byrne, if A&M YCT stops hosting bake sales to protest racial preferential university policies, your athletic program will not consequently improve. The only effect would be that free speech would be suppressed. However, if you will stop focusing time and effort on a political organization and an activity that you know little about and start spending more time doing your job of building A&M athletics, then they may improve.

Sincerely,

David C. Rushing
State Chairman, Young Conservatives of Texas
Texas A&M University, Class of 2002

Christopher M. Allen
State Chairman Emeritus
George Bush School of Government, Class of 2004

Matthew J. Griffing, Esq.
Executive Director

Marc Levin, Esq.
General Counsel

Steven E. Watson
Vice Chairman for Finance

Randy Samuelson
Vice Chairman for Legislative Affairs

Mark McCaig
Vice Chairman for Communications
Texas A&M University, Class of 2005

Nayeem Mohammed
Vice Chairman for Internal Affairs

Jon Gimble
Vice Chairman for Special Events

Sarah Davis
Secretary
Texas A&M, Class of 2004

Matthew Maddox
Chairman, A&M YCT
Class of 2004

[Servant of the 9]

So nice to see these students attempting to make Gates career the living hell his politics have earned him.

So9

[The_Victor]

However, if you will stop focusing time and effort on a political organization and an activity that you know little about and start spending more time doing your job of building A&M athletics, then they may improve

Ouch! That had to sting!

Thanks for posting this, I had not seen the actual letter.