EDITORIALS, OPINIONS. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Sound of silence: race
on campus not an issue
■ OUR OPINION: Students
aren ? interested in
examining color lines
A surprising thing hap
ptmod nt the Emerald lust
week. Wo dor id ml to upon a
forum on raco relations on
campus, hoping to discuss
racial tonsion. Instead, wo
discovered a now minority:
people who care enough to
comment.
Out of an estimated stu
dent population of Hi.500
(most of whom at least do
the ODi.'s i rossword puzzle
c-very day), we ret eived only
four responses, l-'our.
Of those four, one person
said we should he looking at
class discrimination rather
than race and cultural preju
dices. Another told us that
racism at the University was
status-quo and not news
We’re not sure whether that
means we should ha\ e
asked the question sooner or
not asked it at all. In either
case the lack of response has
left us i onfused.
According to throe? of the
l«?lt«?rs, people of color on
this campus havu ex per i
oncod some form of rat isin.
So, if racism does exist on
this t amptis. are these three
people the only ones oxperi
encing it? Does silence on
the part of 99.U portion! of
the student and staff popu
lation indicate that unlike
hundreds of colleges and
universities around the
country, the University does
not have a race problem?
It would he remarkable if
i be answei w era \ m
l Jnfortunately. we are
forced to assume instead
that few of us are interested
in discussing the issue. It's
so messy anyway if you’re
white you have to worry
Emerald
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about saying the "wrong"
thing to someone or being
c alled a racist If you are a
person of color you may
have grown tired of boating
your head against a wall of
ignorance. Or perhaps the
two required race/gender/
non-Eurpoean studies
t lasses are more than
enough to satiate our inter
est and deplete our energy
levels. It's so much easier to
ignore racial division or
accept it as an insurmount
able problem.
Ah. yes. Apathy: The
voic e of our generation
And after all, it afflicts so
few of ns here White stu
dents have the dubious lux
ury of being a majority so
largo that they can glide
through five years of liberal
arts education without even
speaking with someone of
another race But whether
we talk about it now is of
little ( onsoquonc e When
we inherit the "real world"
in the next decade, the
issues we are willing to
ignore now will be slapping
us in the face.
Kvorv major city in the
United States is be< oming
more ra< tally diverse. Some
experts predict that within
50 years within our life
times white people will
he a minority in this coun
try. Yet. for all of our talk of
the multi-colored American
quilt, it's clear that much of
the "color" is still bleeding
along our borders.
Hut it < an wait There will
always be time to resolve
these issues We thought
now would be a great time
to start a dialogue about
this, but we wore wrong.
Please lot us know what
dors interest you. We hate
being out of touch with the
important issues.
F«E AT LAST,
free at last,
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Men are responsible for stopping rape
I think that by now. wt> all know about the
epidemic proportions of violence against
women Oh. 1 know there are people who
will argue this Lately, for example. I've
heard it tossed around that men an* the victims
of violent crime more often than women. 1 sus
|m*i i. however, that there is a qualitative differ
«m e between the violence men inflict on
women, and the violence men inflii t on each
other
Now before some of you start hollering about
domestic violent e and sexual assault against
men, I just want you to know that I know it
happens Men get raped and
haltered by women and by oth
OPINION
or men, and women sometimes
tfot ra)M>d or battered hv other
women
This kind of violence against
anyone is < learlv una< i ept
able I dan t wont to classify
this as strictly a straight
woman's problem. It's not. But
95 percent of spouse abuse,
ant! 97 percent of sexual
MMult is perpetrated bv men against WOlMfl
The most conservative rape estimate is that
one out of every five women gets raped in her
lifetime, others say it's one in four or one in
three According to the FBI. domestii violence
is the leading i a use of injury to women aged
15- 44. causing more injuries than car acci
dents, muggings and rapes combined A
woman is beaten every 15 seconds on average,
and a woman is raped every minute
On a more personal level. I've been trying to
think of women close to me who have not been
sexually assaulted or battered So far. I've come
up with two. Statistics only go so far — when 1
consider how main women 1 know who have
been hurt by men, that's what 1 find frightening.
It's not just physical violence against women
that makes them afraid, though It's a general
atmosphere of fear that permeates our culture
Some guy making catcalls at me as I walk down
the street hasn't laid a finger on me. but he has
contributed to a threatening environment
Women aren't sure what to expect from men
and can't tell which men are safe and which
men are dangerous. The same thing goes for
lewd phone calls or sexual come-ons over the
computer. How am I supposed to know if it's a
guy making a childish attempt at machismo or
some nut who knows where I live?
I’m not pist trying to pick on men l happen
to have a number of quite charming men in my
life Men I trust Men I think of as safe What I
do want to say, though, is that if it is men com
mitting the hulk of rape and battery, it is men
who are responsible for stopping it.
fife
It is men who rape It is men who hatter.
It is men w ho have to stop it
I will continue to take measures for my own
safety, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.
And 1 will do it for my own good but not
la>< ause it's my responsibility. It's not It's
men's responsibility
It is men who rape It is men who batter. It
is men who have to stop it
It's fairly clear to women what they should
do about violence: defend themselves. For
men. maybe it's not quite so < lear.
First of all, realize this affects you. Violence
against women affects women in your life
your mother, your sisters, your girlfriend, your
daughters. It also affects how women see you
You might not be a rapist or batterer, but now
does she know that?
Maybe you think she should trust you, but try
to remember that many women were/will l*>
raped or beaten by men they trusted. There is
no real way for women to know you're a safe
person.
flelp change the atmosphere of violence that
allows men to assault women, and makes
women afraid Confront other men when you
see them acting violently toward women. Abu
sive men are more likely to listen to other men
than to women
Women have a right to walk down the street
without (wing followed, verbally harassed or
touched. Don't stare at, touch or make sugges
tive comments to women walking down the
street And don't follow women, especially at
night or in deserted areas. Cross the street or
pass women.
Don't make sexist jokes or jokes about rape or
abuse of women If your friends are making
jokes like this, tell them why it's unacceptable.
Violent e isn't funny. Also, pay attention to the
language you and your friends use to talk about
women and sex A lot of the slang used is real
ly quite degrading to women.
Take a women's studies class to learn about
how society is different for women than for
men. Consider your own attitudes toward
women Listen to what women sav about vio
lence.
Not all men are violent toward women, hut it
is not just a "women's problem." All men are
responsible for helping stop the violence.
/mu M Bond, a junior majoring in journalism, is
a columnist for tfw Emerald.