OPINION
Complaint a model of hypocrisy
Pat Malach
If there's ono thing students
at the University are going to
learn about in great detail
here in Eugone. It's hypocrisy.
In un effort to change the
world for the better, many woll
intontloned people on campus
consistently slide down the
slippery slope of inconsistently
applying their ideals and be
liefs. In philosophy, it's called
situational ethics, and it is gen
erally viewed as a very negative
moral attribute.
In a nutshell, situational eth
ics means people's beliefs and
principles constantly change so
thut they am always tho l>one
factor, never the loser.
It is often practiced by those
of the politically correct philos
ophy. Admittedly, this phrase
has boon considerably overused
and there is a definite backlash
against it.
In this beliof, however, there
is ono acceptable idea (it can be
either liberal or conservative)
-and all others should not be tol
erated or heard. It ombraces all
positives und conveniently ig
nores all negatives.
* The recent complaint about a
racist statement made against
Chinese students is a perfect
examole.
Tho person making the origi
nal statement labeled all Chi
nese people with one attribute
It was a broad generalization af
fecting an entire race of people.
It was demeaning and degrad
ing because it gave no credit to
Chinese people as individuals.
However, this racist state
ment was not made by Peter
Briggs The racial statement in
question belongs to Darrell
Neet, a Westmoreland mainten
ance worker who said Chinese
people are at a disadvantage in
the system because they urn too
_ polite.
Briggs' response that Chinese
people know how to work a
system and "will walk all over
you if you let them” was obvi
ously deplorable Hal-Yang
Yuun, president of the Chinese
Students and Scholars Associa
tion, was correct in his com
plaint thut Briggs' sweeping
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generalization is by all defini
tions a racist stereotype
But Neet's stereotypo was
just as sweeping, narrow-mind
ed and demeaning to Chinese
pcoplo as individuals. What
does Yuan have to say about
Neet's commont? He reaffirms
Neet's storootype and adds to It
by writing, "Politeness is one of
our most treasured cultural val
ues."
There you have It in writing:
complete hypocrisy rearing Its
ugly head in the name of cul
tural sensitivity. A nogatlvo
stereotype attributed to an en
tire group of people is a "racist
remark." A patronizing stereo
type attributed to an entire
group of people is a "treasured
cultural value."
II you view both statements
on how thoy fit the definition
of racism and stereotypes. they
ans identical. If you apply them
in an arena of situational eth
ics, Neel gets a thanks whilo
people call for Briggs to bn
fired.
It should be either ono or the
other, but not both Either there
are some truits that can be
shared by every member of a
culture, or there are no traits
that are common to every mem
ber of a culture.
Most importantly, tho decid
ing factor should not be wheth
er the trait is negative or pa
tronizing, which seems to bo
Yuun's criterion
Let me say this again for the
record, I am not justifying
Briggs' statement It was wrong
But tho complaint that followed
also poses some problems. And
tho situational criteria Yuan
used in his complaint are not
the only strains on the credibil
ity of the action
The original letter of com
plaint is loaded with the empty
rhetoric popular with people
stretching to prove a point.
In the letter, Yuan writes:
"we feel that our culture is be
ing raped and our dignity Is be
ing fractured by those racist re
marks.”
I'm sure Briggs would be
amazed to discover ho is such a
The deciding factor
should not be
whether the trait Is
negative or
patronizing, which
seems to be the
criterion In Yuan's
complaint
powerful man that — silting in
his little office in Eugene. Ore.
— ho can commit rape against a
5.OOO-yeor-old culture of 1,3
billion peoplo.
In fairness to Chinese people
everywhere. I offer proof to dis
pel Yuan and Neel's racist ster
eotype about the polltenoss of
every Chinese person
! know of a University stu
dent, who happens to be Chi
nese, who could tell one person
one thing and turn around and
tell someone else something
completely different. This ma
nipulative individual certainly
knew how to work a system,
and he was probably capable
walking nil over you.
1 also would dan; to conclude
that the Chinese hardliners
who ordered the murder of stu
dents in Tiananmen Square
wore hardly being polite.
It’s probably fairest to say
that the Chinese culture is like
all other groups of human be
ings, The culture probably in
cludes many very polite people
— and some rude ones. There
are probably many kind-heart
ed Chineso folks — and some
mean ones. There are probably
happy Ciunose people — and
sad ones.
To be safe, rather than mak
ing sweeping generalizations —
positive or negative — maybe
wo should take Martin Luther
King Jr.'s advice and Judge
members of one of the grandest
cultures on Earth by the con
tent of their character, rather
than the color of their skin.
Put A/a Inch in editor of the
Emerald. i
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