Posted on 07/01/2009 4:51:10 AM PDT by Kaslin
Author’s Note - In response to my last two columns, 88 Duke University professors have issued a joint statement condemning gay racism at Duke. The professors wanted to shed light on the gay Duke Administrator accused of molesting his black adopted son. They believe his actions must be seen as one part of a larger set of pathologies at Duke. Their statement follows in its entirety:
We are listening to our students. We’re also listening to the Durham community, to Duke Staff, and to each other. Regardless of the results of the police investigation, what is apparent everyday now is the anger and fear of many students who know themselves to be objects of gay racism; who see illuminated in this moment’s extraordinary spotlight what they live with every day. They know that it isn’t just Duke, it isn’t everybody, and it isn’t just individuals making this disaster.
But it is a disaster nonetheless. These students are shouting and whispering about what happened to this young boy and to themselves:
“We want the absence of terror… But we don’t really know what that means … We can’t think. That’s why we’re so silent; we can’t think about what’ on the other side of this. Terror robs you of language and you need language for healing to begin.”
“This is not a different experience for us here at Duke University. We go to class with gay racist classmates, we go to gym with gay people who are racists … It’s part of the experience.”
“If it turns out that this administrator is guilty, I want him fired. But his firing will only bring resolution to this case and not the bigger problem. This is much bigger than him and throwing him out will not solve the problem. I want the administration to acknowledge what is going on and how bad it is.”
“Being a big, black man, it’s hard to walk anywhere at night, and not have a campus police car slowly drive by me. What about the gay administrators at Duke University? No one seems to follow them.”
“Everything seems up for grabs—I am only comfortable talking about this event in my room with close friends. I am actually afraid to even bring it up in public. But worse, I wonder now about everything … If something like this happens to my child … What would be used against me – the way I dressed him? Would the fact that I hired a gay babysitter matter?”
“I was talking to a white woman student who was asking me, ‘Why do people—and she meant black people—make race such a big issue?’ They don’t see race or gay racism. They just don’t see it.”
What Does a Social Disaster Sound Like?
“You go to a party, you get grabbed, you get propositioned by a gay man, and then you start to question yourself.”
“… No one is really talking about how to keep the young child himself central to this conversation, how to keep his humanity before us … he doesn’t seem to be visible in this.”
And this is what we, the Straight 88, are thinking right now—Duke isn’t really responding to this. Not really. And this, what has happened, is a disaster. This is a social disaster. The students know that the disaster didn’t begin on June 25th when Frank Lombard was arrested. And it won’t end with what the police say or the court decides. Like all disasters, this one has a history. And what lies beneath what we’re hearing from our students are questions about the future.
We’re turning up the volume in a moment when some of the most vulnerable among us are being asked to quiet down while we wait. To the students speaking individually and to the protestors making collective noise, thank you for not waiting and for making yourselves heard.
We thank the following departments and programs for signing onto this ad with African & African American Studies: Romance Studies; Psychology: Social and Health Sciences;
Franklin Humanities Institute; Critical U.S. Studies; Art, Art History, and Visual Studies;
Classical Studies; Asian and African Languages and Literature; Women’s Studies; Latino/a Studies; Latin American and Caribbean Studies; Medieval and Renaissance Studies; European Studies; and the Center for Documentary Studies. Because of space limitations, the names of individual faculty and staff who signed on in support may be read at the AAAS website: http://www.duke.edu/web/africanameric/.
“88” happens to be the sign by which neo-nazis identify each other.
In my opinion they shared the same boys also.
They should move to MA and the voters there would put them in Congress beside Barney Frank.
Decency is dying in this Country minute-by- minute.
Once it is gone, it won’t return.
They need to be made into a "new creation" 2 cor 5:17.
Maybe this will make more sense to some if we post the original version of the advertisement known as the “listening statement” as placed by the Duke professors known as the “Group of 88”. This was meant to condemn the lacrosse players shortly after they were accused of raping that stripper.
We are listening to our students. We’re also listening to the Durham community, to Duke staff, and to each other. Regardless of the results of the police investigation, what is apparent everyday now is the anger and fear of many students who know themselves to be objects of racism and sexism, who see illuminated in this moment’s extraordinary spotlight what they live with everyday. They know that it isn’t just Duke, it isn’t everybody, and it isn’t just individuals making this disaster.
But it is a disaster nonetheless.
These students are shouting and whispering about what happened to this young woman and to themselves.
. . .We want the absence of terror. But we don’t really know what that means . . . We can’t think. That’s why we’re so silent; we can’t think about what’s on the other side of this. Terror robs you of language and you need language for the healing to begin. 1
This is not a different experience for us here at DukeUniversity. We go to class with racist classmates, we go to gym with people who are racists....It’s part of the experience. [Independent, 29 March 2006] 2
If it turns out that these students are guilty, I want them expelled. But their expulsion will only bring resolution to this case and not the bigger problem. This is much bigger than them and throwing them out will not solve the problem. I want the administration to acknowledge what is going on and how bad it is. 3
Being a big, black man, it’s hard to walk anywhere at night,
and not have a campus police car slowly drive by me. 4
Everything seems up for grabs—I am only comfortable talking about this event
in my room with close friends. I am actually afraid to even bring it up in public.
But worse, I wonder now about everything. . . . If something like this happens to
me . . . What would be used against me—my clothing? Where I was? 5
I was talking to a white woman student who was asking me “Why do people —
and she meant black people — make race such a big issue?”
They don’t see race. They just don’t see it. 6
What Does A Social Disaster Sound Like
You go to a party, you get grabbed, you get propositioned, and then you start to question yourself. [Independent, 29 March 2006]7
. . . all you heard was “Black students just complain all the time, all you do is complain and self-segregate.” And whenever we try to explain why we’re offended, it’s pushed back on us. Just the phrase “self-segregation”: the blame is always put on us. [Independent, 29 March 2006] 8
. . . no one is really talking about how to keep the young woman herself central
to this conversation, how to keep her humanity before us . . . she doesn’t seem
to be visible in this. Not for the university, not for us 9
I can’t help but think about the different attention given to what has happened from what it would have been if the guys had been not just black but participating in a different sport, like football, something that’s not so upscale. 10
And this is what I’m thinking right now – Duke isn’t really responding to this. Not really. And this, what has happened, is a disaster. This is a social disaster. 11
The students know that the disaster didn’t begin on March 13th and won’t end with what the police say or the court decides. Like all disasters, this one has a history. And what lies beneath what we’re hearing from our students are questions about the future. This ad, printed in the most easily seen venue on campus, is just one way for us to say that we’re hearing what our students are saying. Some of these things were said by a mixed (in every way possible) group of students on Wednesday, March 29th at an African & African American Studies Program forum, some were printed in an issue of the Independent that came out that same day, and some were said to us inside and outside of the classroom. We’re turning up the volume in a moment when some of the most vulnerable among us are being asked to quiet down while we wait. To the students speaking individually and to the protestors making collective noise, thank you for not waiting and for making yourselves heard.
We thank the following departments and programs for signing onto this ad with African & African American Studies: Romance Studies; Psychology: Social and Health Sciences; Franklin Humanities Institute; Critical U.S. Studies; Art, Art History, and Visual Studies; Classical Studies; Asian & African Languages and Literature; Women’s Studies; Latino/a Studies; Latin American and Caribbean Studies; Medieval and Renaissance Studies; European Studies; Program in Education; and the Center for Documentary Studies. Because of space limitations, the names of individual faculty and staff who signed on in support may be read at the AAAS website: http://www.duke.edu/web/africanameric/
BUMP
If it doesn’t rhyme, they can’t “stay on message”.
Too many cartoon theme songs running through their heads.
“George, George, George of the jungle! ... Watch out for that TREE!”
No one is responding at Duke because they're such superficial shallow people that the selling and rape of a 5 year old black child is trumped by the glorious cool attributes of gayness: (well, meaningless superficial attributes - but Duke is lowbrow...)
The child rapists work out in a gym
drink the "in" coffees
have the right "art" on their walls
drive a hybred car
read the New York Times - and maybe the New Yorker...
For the lowlife, puffed up idiots at Duke University or the MSM - New York Times, Washington Post, ABC News, James Carville and Friends, Jesse Jackson etc. - that's enough to give him a pass on selling and raping a 5 year old black child. Do you hear any of them objecting?
I. I would not go to the party.
2. If grabbed, I would do my best to convince him not to make that mistake again.
“Systemic racism” and “racial tensions” would be a thing of only historical curiosity within 2 generations if we dropped any and all preferences and behavioral allowances based on “race”.
Everyone held to the same standards. Everyone experiencing consequences for breaking those standards. Two, maybe even just one, generation, and it stops.
No one is responding at Duke because they're such superficial shallow people. They think the right coffee or PC ideas held trump the crime of selling and raping children.
And what "trumps" do these monsters have - the glorious cool attributes of gayness: (well, meaningless superficial attributes - but Duke is lowbrow...)
The child rapists work out in a gym
drink the "in" coffees
have the right "art" on their walls
drive a hybrid car
read the New York Times - and maybe the New Yorker...
For the lowlife, puffed up idiots at Duke University or the MSM - New York Times, Washington Post, ABC News, James Carville and Friends, Jesse Jackson etc. - that's enough to give him a pass on selling and raping a 5 year old black child.
Do you hear any of them objecting?
Wow, apparently not even the word ‘parody’ in the title is enough now...
Great parody by Mike Adams. He is relentless on this story which would be as huge as the fake Duke Rape case, that is if we had an unbiased media.
Go back and read that first graph. Did a college professor really write this ?
Yes. See post #49. That is the original “listening statement” as put out by the Group of 88.
Apparently so.
Jeez, don’t they teach sarcasm in the schools anymore?
It’s a beautiful parody. Absolutely devastating.
BTW, I live here in Nifongville...nothing about this case in the Herald-Sun today, again. The case got the level of initial reporting that you might expect for a child rape, but since then, it’s fallen off the radar. No investigative reporting on Eno Commons and what might be going on there. No stories about Lombard’s role at Duke. No screaming outcries that a white man was raping a black child (which, given that this *is* Durham, surprises me). No, the Herald-Sun’s website is leading with stories of some celebration going on over at North Carolina Central University, Crystal Mangum’s alma mater.
}:-)4
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