Commentary
Act of discriminating
cannot be justified—
against any person
Guest commentary
I am a white, middle-class,
church-going conservative Christ
ian. There, I said it. Boy does it
feel good to come out of the closet!
I admit this with trepidation be
cause I identify myself with a
group of people who are becoming
increasingly unpopular. Just as
some of you are reading this, I
have no doubt that the words
“hate monger,” “hypocrite” and
“Bible thumper” are going through
some of your minds. Please put
your prejudices aside and read this
before you burn it.
As a white male Christian, I’d like
to point out that I have never once
committed a hate crime, nor have I
ever condemned anyone to hell. I’ve
been called a “Bible thumper” nu
merous times, but I can’t recall one
single time when I actually
thumped on a Bible. I don’t hate ho
mosexuals or people who get abor
tions — or homosexuals who get
abortions, for that matter.
In fact, I don’t even like to con
sider myself a conservative. I like
to think of myself as a “middle-of
the-road” kind of guy. I’m labeled
a conservative because Christians
and conservatives are often
lumped into the same category.
I’m also labeled as a conserva
tive by people who are so far left of
the road that anybody in the mid
dle of the road is obviously conser
vative. I feel sorry for people to the
right of the road because they’re
obviously Nazis.
I am writing this in response to
the numerous articles that have
been written lately dealing with
the sensitive subject of hate
speech and homophobia. All too
often, perpetrators of hate speech
are assumed to be Christian, and
in some cases these idiots even
claim to be Christian. Please do
not consider these people prod
ucts of Christianity. They have se
verely twisted Christianity to jus
tify their own personal biases.
I am against discrimination of
any kind. I know what it is like to
be discriminated against. Because
I am a student at Northwest Chris
tian College, I am automatically a
homophobe, a racist and a closed
minded ignoramus. This kind of
discrimination is often justified
because it’s “discriminating
against discriminators,” and
therefore it’s acceptable.
Discrimination is discrimina
tion, no matter who you are dis
criminating against. When it
comes down to it, discrimination
is judging people. I believe Jesus
said it best when he said, “Judge
not lest ye be judged.” What a nov
el concept.
Nathan Traylor lives in Eugene.
Hate speech, intolerance
hurt many groups at UO
Guest commentary
The recent demonstrations on
campus regarding the May 9 guest
commentary by Vincent Martora
no (“Homosexual men should hide
their disgusting acts,” ODE) were
important and necessary to show
support for the gay and lesbian
community. Martorano’s comment
that he has “no problem with gay
individuals, as long as they stay in
the closet” was about as plausible
as the Feb. 4 commentary by Earl
Gosnell (“’Nigger’ has several
meanings used to show accept
ance, kindness,” ODE) in which
he argued that the term “nigger”
can express endearment.
There was no demonstration or
letters of outrage when that com
mentary was printed. There was
only silence which spoke louder
than any words could have.
This is why I find Martorano’s
disgust at the liberalism on this
campus ridiculous. How many peo
ple of color are in your classes?
One? None? How many professors?
How many professors here would
feel “safe” in disclosing their sexual
orientation to their class?
I am amazed that those who are
consistently marginalized on this
campus are still persevering and are
strong enough to have open rela
tionships or can attend a mostly
white university knowing that hate
speech will be printed in the news
paper that is supposed to represent
the voice of all of the students here.
My position as a white woman
grants me privilege that others do
not receive. Nothing made this
more clear than last term when
three other classmates and I did a
social research project in which
we went into local grocery stores
to purchase fish. The non-white
students in the experiment were
followed in the store, ignored
when they asked for help, mis
treated when they finally received
help and treated as if they were in
visible until one of the white stu
dents interacted with them.
Grocery shopping is something
that we all have to do. If the expe
rience of participating in this life
supporting activity was this trau
matic and dehumanizing, then
what is it like to be a student on
this campus who does not “be
long” to the majority and is singled
out in guest commentaries?
It is the responsibility, in my
opinion, of the students on this
campus to ensure that all groups
are equally supported and that
hate speech in our student-run
newspaper is not tolerated. We
cannot be complacent about this
issue any longer.
Celeste Burns is a senior sociology
major.
Raw Talent
The Oregon Daily Emerald is always looking
for young writers who want to learn and grow
at a real newspaper.
For information on how to freelance for the Oregon Daily
Emerald, call 346-5511.
GER 223
Germany:
A Multicultural
Society
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Ki.'ifl Mill I 111
154 S1H,
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Satisfies. Arts & Letters and
Multicultural IB Requirement:
GER 223 examines complexities of the
increasingly multi-ethnic German Society
through the writings of African. Turkish: and
Jewish Germans as well as contemporary films
on the .topic. This course introduces students to
the political and social challenges faced by
post-unification Germany. VVe will consider
socioeconomic, political, and cultural issues of
minority populations. As we study the various
groups we will investigate the ways in which
they have helped to redefine what counts as
"German" today:
Summer 2003
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