1991_09 The Daily Collegian September 1991

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The Daily  Collegian • September  10,1-991-  JL.
The Dally Collegian
Editor in Chief
Jana Ballinger
Managing Editor
Shan/urn Wentzvorth
News Editor
Krista Lemos
Copy Editor
Debbie Richards
Sports Editor
Graphics Editor
Claire Anselmo
Photo Editor
Hector Amezcua
ArtSpeak Editors
Jason Terada
ToddHeth
Staff Writers
Michelle Martin, Stacey
Dennehy, Erin Yasuda,
/. Scott Walker, Syed Zaheer,
Heidi Burkhardt, Aimee
Fisher, Kimberly Wright, Yu
Ting Huang, Chuck-Richard
Dixon, Renee Ruelas
Sports Writers
Chris Cocoles, Richard
fames, Daniel Evans, David
Donnelly
Staff Photographer
Carl Burdick, Dena
Chambers
Staff Artists
News Aide
Denise Envoy
Columnists
Contributors
Eric Burney, Catherine
Jiguet-Jiglaire
B
usiness Manager
Khalid Rashid
Advertising Manager
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Manager
Lance Jackson
Published since 1922
'by'" '
THE ASSOCIATED
STUDENTS, INC.
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Melting pot still segregated
By Michael S. Handorf
Diversity. It seems as if
America can't get enough of it.
America has even been
described as a melting pot Yet
all of the components of the pot
are retaining and magnifying
their own traits rather than
contributing to the whole. Is
America really celebrating
diversity and ethnic differences
or merely promulgating and
encouraging segregation? The
latter appears to be the case.
There is an ugly trend in
America to put racial parame¬
ters around the characteristics
of individuals. An individual's
worth is no longer the sum of
his abilities and initiative, it is
subject of an interpretation by
the individual or group that is
evaluating him, and that
interpretation is based on a
collection of characteristics that
he has no control over.
Nearly forty years ago.
Brown vs. Board of Education
attempted to remove the
roadblocks to integration that
were built by the white male
power structure. But it is clear
that In the last ten years,
integration as a whole has not
been a goal of America's ethnic
groups. Access to public
facilities such as universities
has been a goal, but actual
integration is not a goal. Across
the nation we are faced with
policies and organizations
whose intentions need to be
called into question before the
issue leads to a second Civil
War. One cannot rum on a talk
show today without being
subjected to some individual or
group that claims it has been
disadvantaged and is demand¬
ing that the government not
only recognize these disadvan¬
tages but a lso Institute numer¬
ous programs to rectify past
wrongs.
Policies such as Affirma¬
tive Action have evolved from
this current trend. An
individual's ability to complete
a task or solve a problem is not
quite as significant as his racial
background. Affirmative
Action has accentuated the
differences between the ethnic
groups in America by discount¬
ing the capabilities of an
individual by factoring his race
into the equation. We will not
achieve a "color-blind" society
as long as race is an informal
(but actual) prerequisite for
employment in the job market
or acceptance into academic
institutions.
Concurrently, students in
America are encouraged to
engage in activities that deepen
the gap between the races.
High schools everywhere have
sponsored "alternativeproms"
and universities hold separate
graduation ceremonies for
graduates from certain ethnic
backgrounds. What has been
offered as the justification of
such separationist activities by
these minority groups? The
supporters of such policies
argue that there needs to be
separate celebrations for these
minority youth. On college
campuses, there are hundreds
of organizations that exist to
further the interests of specific
minority students. Even here at
Fresno State there are dozens of
organizations that have
succeeded in separating
students by ethnic background:
the Korean Students Associa¬
tion, MEChA, and the African
Student Union to name a few.
But one does not find an
Anglo Saxon Student Alliance
on campus. And no one ever
will. If such a group were even
conceived that unified students
from a Northern European or
English background, the group
would be instantaneously
attacked as a "racist" organiza¬
tion. But why? Maybe the
Anglo Saxon students just want
to celebrate their heritage or
investigate their culturarNo.
"Progressives" and 'liberals"
on this campus argue that
organizations with predomi¬
nantly Caucasian members that
are descended from England or
Germany are racist by their
very nature. Here at Fresno
State such groups of individu-.
als are considered a threat to
diversity and other ethnic
groups.
This line of thinking needs
to be eradicated. We cannot
expect to continue to separate
people into categories based on
hereditary traits and geo¬
graphical regions of descent
while claiming to work toward
ending radsm. Individuals
need to be evaluated and
assessed in this life by their
accomplishments, abilities and
initiative. Not by the way their
surname is spelled...
Mr. Handorf is a columnist
for Tbe Daily Collegian.
Editorial Headquarters
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Letters to the Editor
Student ready to demand her rights, education
¥ -— HalU J L- .     -
I am writing in response to
Andres Montoya. I am a
student here at Fresno State
University. How do I get
involved in making an impact
on change for the better?
I see education in general
going to the cockroaches. I read
of children receiving their
lessons in a fly infested dirty
latrine. Will attaining an
eventually all over come down
to that?
Education is, only one
finger of the body bailing the
government out of their Fat
Cats mistakes.
In people gaining power
back for a democratic govern¬
ment, we need to regulate this
external and internal greed.
The people should have a say
and the right to know where
their money is going. We need
a free caring press, too. Tne
truth is if we don't crack down
for a responsible and just
democratic government now,
our democratic education
system will become a hardlined
system.
I expect to receive quality
education. In addressing
Montoya saying "that students
need to come en masse to
demand their rights," I'm ready
to march with masses of people
all the way to the Capitol.
Being that my ancestors
came from totalitarian govern¬
ments to America for a better
life, I will never be willing to
give up that freedom of
democracy.
As the Irish Spring
commercial blissfully states,
"the Irish never quit" They do
nol take a bunch of blarney,
either.
Peace,
JoAnne Nolan