UT (Univ of Texas) president proposes required diversity class

Houston Chronicle ^ | 5/11/04 | TODD ACKERMAN

[AmishDude]

These things are a disaster. It just forces people who have real majors to take unnecessary humanities classes pushed by weak-minded professors with an agenda.

Make calculus a requirement.

[Nataku X]

Well, this is nitpicking, but my ugrad university was not conservative and it required 2 semesters of Western Civilization for every student. Many universities do the same.

[quadrant]

I wonder if the President of the University of Texas knows that Wilson, though President of Princeton and Governor of New Jersey, was born in Virginia and spent his boyhood in South Carolina. Also, Wilson had a extremely paternalistic attitude toward blacks and frequently told stories about them that would be considered offensive today.

[DumpsterDiver]

...concerns about not feeling welcome,

Feelings
Nothing more then feelings
Trying to forget my
Feelings of hate

Imagine
Beating on your face
Trying to forget my
Feelings of hate

Feelings
For all my life i'll feel it
I wish I'd never met you
You'll make me sick again

Feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Of hate on my mind

Feelings
Feelings like I never liked you
Feelings like I want to kill you
Live in my heart

Feelings
Feelings like I wanna deck you
Feelings like I've gotta get you
Out of my life

Feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Hate's in my eyes

Feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
You're not very nice

Feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Hate's on my mind

Feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Woh-oh-oh feelings
Get out of my life

[Clemenza]

Wilson's correspondence with Colonel Edward Mandel House is some of the most racist commentary I have read from a 20th century politician. His comments on the Mexican Revolution are particularly offensive to modern ears and were probably extreme for most educated people at the time.

[cyborg]

Anyone FORCED to take such a class would find it as boring as hell or maybe would encourage a prejudiced view opposite of the goal they're trying to achieve. I'd avoid such classes like the plague *LOL* i don't think I could sit through a whole semester with my mouth shut.

[quadrant]

I guess it proves you don't have to be too bright to be president of a university.

[MeanFreePath]

"Goodbye to texas university,
So long, to the organge and the white,
Good luck to dear old Texas Aggies,
They are the boys who show the real old fight,
'the eyes of Texas are upon you,"
That is the song they sing so well,
SOUNDS LIKE HELL,
So goodbye to texas university,
We're gonna beat you all to Chigaroogarem!
Chigaroogarem,
Rough, Tough, Real stuff, Texas A&M!

[rock58seg]

But the students did try to feel the concept of diversity and ethnicity. They even went so far as to wear blackface. What could be more supportive. Perhaps it is time for the complainers to grow up.

[ntnychik]

Oh good--a college my daughter can attend where her conservatism will be accepted.

[Unam Sanctam]

The academic thought police in full steam.

[PAR35]

Did you pick up on the fact that he plans to move the Confederate statues?

[lentulusgracchus]

But no feedback is needed to assure that he/she will be black.

Why does it have to be a "he" or a "she"? Why does the new racemeister have to be gendered at all? Aren't we trying to overcome the parochialism of Texas-isms?

I think you're just bigoted against gonadless people. </snivel>

[lentulusgracchus]

Did you pick up on the fact that he plans to move the Confederate statues?

Yeah, he's going to "group" them until nobody notices that they aren't where they used to be, and then they'll be gone for good, melted down in the middle of the night.

PC purges come to UT.

[lentulusgracchus]

Also, Wilson had a extremely paternalistic attitude toward blacks and frequently told stories about them that would be considered offensive today.

I'll bet they're all exquisitely aware of Wilson's views on race, and that his statue, no less than Davis's, is headed for the crucible.

[lentulusgracchus]

Nah, no bias in that article.

The Houston Chronicle editor brought in a new, liberal policy a few years ago. The Chronicle vitriolically attacks conservative Baptists on a regular basis and kisses up to gay ecclesiastical cow-tippers. The Chron is relentlessly pro-gay, anti-religious (unless it's a defensible sort of religion, like Hinduism or the Metropolitan Church or reform Judaism), anti-Republican (except for the Bush family, whom they defend in order to avoid getting on the wrong side of Houston's power establishment), anti-conservative, anti-military, anti-American, anti-straight, and anti-everything that isn't coffeehouse Eurosocialism.

Think of them as gay French weenies sipping red wine and complaining about Americans who go to church and drive cars instead of bicycling or taking mass transit. That's about where the Houston Chronicle comes from any more.

[stainlessbanner]

Any plan to move or group statues together is translated into "removal"

[lentulusgracchus]

No doubt about that. Just wish the former governor had set a better example of standing up to racist graymail.

[Gefreiter]

Ha ha! You guys are right, and I've spent enough time on campuses to know to choose my words better.

I think it's a world of difference to force students to take a multiculturalism class, for its own sake, than to take a true history or lit course.

And in the schools I've worked at or attended, European history was NEVER a requirement, but SOME history sequence was required. In other words, folks got their history block checked off in some way, although not neccessarily with a Euro course.

[Nataku X]

I think it's a world of difference to force students to take a multiculturalism class, for its own sake, than to take a true history or lit course.

No disagreement here. Still, it's not a huge thing to worry about. What cyborg says is 100% on--if you force students to take such an asinine class, it'll backfire on them...