Ethnic diversity abounds on campus I never thought I’d be pm ning • letter in defense of the University It puts research well before education buries slu> dtmis tn tmreaucrw v is dumb ing down at an incredible rate and must have a mission state menl somewhere along the lines of. "We bend over fir any shift in the whims of political correctness “ I tame here because despite its blatant mismanagement of funds, the I University is cheaper than anywhere else In spite of this generally low opinion of the school, when I read |oey Lyons’ letter (OOf. Feb 14). I didn't know whether to laugh or cry Lyons wrote. “As a student interested in studying ethnic history and politics, there is nest to nothing for me here * Excuse me? Any casual f[lance through the course cata ug will rev eal a plethora of such courses, Tho University offers more courses on the history* and literature of various cultures than one person could take in a lifetime, much let* in four year* He wrote that he's had only one professor who was not " Eu rnpeexi • American “ What does that mean? Is that by descent or citizenship? And it it is by descent, just bow far back do you want to go? What about the idea that the oniy real Americans are the descendants of those whom inhabited this continent prior to European settlement? Have all his professors been Native Americans? (On that note, my grandfather was (mm In Denmark, yet I consider myself a native of America — a land that my fourth grade teacher taught me owed much of Its greatness to being a "melting pot " of cultures, which led to its own unique identity.) And if our priority is to be the educational veneration of pro fessurs differently cultured than ourselves. »b»i‘. wrong with Europeans? Does thetr physical similarity doom them to scaring the same cultural heritage with mat of tha United Slate*’ !‘d bet ha hasn’t bean to tha Ukraine lately. Lyon* complained that whan it come* to other peoples, their tradition* and their hart (ages, all I've learned is what I’ve been able to read * l* Lyons somehow bound to a hospital bed or unable to physi cally enler the campus? That must be so, for otherwise he'd have teen the daily dis play* in the EMU in which stu dents from practically every cultura on Earth are almost beg ging lo share their native cul ture* with the rest of the student body. He’d have been able to take African dance c lasses from Rita Hnnka. participate in weekly religious activities with I lie lew ish (or a number of other faiths) Student Union or visit the awe some photography display tea luring prominent African-American women Lyons asked. "Are there facul ty of color, women professors, gay, lesbian or bisexual profes sors. teaching in their disci pline?" Damn straight there are I can't believe he sees a lark of female professor* contributing to Ihe Women's Studies Pro gram. I look a course in modern Chi nese history Iasi term from Dr Guo. who is not only Chinese, but experienced the atrocities of the Cultural Revolution and observed the reforms of Deng Xiaoping The vast majority of my Japan a»# language instructors are Japanese, and they bring to the classroom not only a native speaker's knowledge of the Ian guafe. but a personal knowledge at the culture that i» inextricably tied to it. If you want to learn how a people think* and feel* then learn the way it speak* A* for gay. lesbian and bises ual professor* in the vast major ity of cases. I don’t know, and unless they choose to share it with you. neither should you The crucial point, however, is not that Lyons has missed a world of opportunity to study various cultures here The point is hit bate ridden implication that an educator must be horn of a culture to teach about it What does tt matter, really, if a professor of Thai history is Thai, so long as he or she ts an esperl in the subject matter f Lyons explains that history la subjective — ye*, thank you. I knew that 1* he trying to say that mem her* of one culture will be less subjective than member* of another? Sound* like H and some very good people through out my short life have taught me diet to make assumption* about an individual based on the sole criteria of their ethnicity t* evil Period Are professors Goble and Bogel less worthy to teach Japanese history and art history because they do not have Japan ese parents! In his last paragraph. Lyons refers to "what is important to say and not say " Thu* hi* lac lit * are revealed Tor ail his talk of "the ability of our civilisation to work logeth er, respect and support each tuber." Lyons setons to care only for waging a war of politically correct. dogmatic syntax, the only possible result of which is the driving of an ever larger wedge between the various cut' lute* on this campus and throughout the world Adam Haamuimn it an Aston Studtos itnifot '’’Pizza Pipeline Get the real real Z2&:% T-I-l■ WRVM# Mil MbhqEsx^Qsi1 «.ul« k Smk«* «iihI a I .ill i rk hrmswEEK TEB^gMAA^ ^ 'I mm V 4 in*i» f t mm « W Sponsored by l MU Food Services V V Thursday. February 29th l Ben Linder Room, 6-8 p.m. S Find out what the KMU has in store 1 for the future; I * Market survey results Tournament * 1 Ccrtm*** 6^4 A JS2 il 8 am 4 I'M 1|| M*ot UcroiM Gam* l§|j Southhank it««J H|| M*n'» Ucrtm* Gam* I9| Soothfcank f*k) I Bauehalt Gam* n ifl W*»«*rn Wuhiinjten ;f§ Shtkfcm Htgh School f*«M I 12 <• m POUfUE HEAPC*_■ Concert J' Tickets UmVMStTT ICHIOUUWC COHIHC IQOW > Coming Attroctionsr Jr Mor 2 CurnsSolgodo... .$1000 Mor 5 Gut Blossoms___._,_ -~-,—,,,.$15 00 UOpOwtUSltMCR Mor 7 Si Potty's Doy Celebration w/Sky Doy ---$600 Mor 11 leftover $clmoo____,_ --$7 00uOt**fan/5t»GR Mor 14 Babes with Aits. $600 Mor 77 Floater $5 00 Mor 29 Bjorklund/JUkenbauch_„_$5.00 Mar 30 3rd Annual April Foot s Boil .$6.00 April I Tbe Charlie Hunter Trio.___„_„ - —$7 00 UO Uwtaw/S*MGR April 9 James Cotton.... . ....$10.00 uor TxtonuAym to»emte cherp Jr ,TftJ9flVmilj!V|Sl* THAT IfffT YQiW NUW YOU* FIIDAACK !j