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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (April 10, 1996)
Opinion Letter to the Editor The Clackamas Print Wednesday, April 10,1996 <1 GARVISON, STEP DOWN! ! ! Dissent, upheaval, disrup tion of the status quo, through our history all these have been nec essary ingredients in the preser vation of human rights, freedom, and democracy. Requiring ac countability from our public in stitutions ensures they remain just that - public institutions. It takes a great deal of courage to stand up and be the one, maybe the only one, to raise the questions and persist until they are adequately answered. It also takes a great deal of intelligence to succeed in uncovering inconsistencies and even more cunning to manipulate constructive results. It also costs. Anyone reading this who knows the personal cost of step ping out in front and voicing dis sent also knows the price of those few minutes of being heard. Any organized group trying to accom plish something wisely chooses a spokesman who will make the best use of such costly time. I must go on record to say I did not choose and would never choose John Garvison as a spokes per son for the monitoring of fiscal accountability here at Clackamas Community College. Quite frankly I feel he and the UnderGround have done à great disservice to those who would support more aggressive measures taken toward public re view of CCC fiscal policy. Mr. Garvison, I implore you, either get a vocabulary, learn some re search skills that will uncover something worthwhile, and dem onstrate some respect for the fo rum you are so foolishly assum ing you are qualified to partici pate in or shut you mouth! The only thing I would listen to from you at this point is a public apol ogy to John Keyser, Gary Dirrim, Jan Anderson, and Joe Uris. Those of us who know anything at all about them, our numbers are many, also know the degree to which you have made an utter fool of yourself. Members of the under ground staff: there is so much worthwhile that you could do to represent truly useful dissent. Please stop wasting such a privi lege! Karyn Hanson It's time you saw less of your dog. He says... She says... April should be White, Heterosexual Male Month It’s your turn to sit in the back of the bus Jack Evans Staff Writer I am not a racist, nor am I a chauvinistic pig. I never judge a person by their looks, beliefs, gender, or sexual preference, etc. My whole philosophy on people is, “If you are cool to me, then I’ll be cool to you.” I believe ev eryone should be treated equally, and I thought that was what soci ety was turning towards — equal ity for all. Welcome to the 90’s, though, where being politically correct is the only rule for soci ety. From what I’ve figured out from this whole political correct ness bit is that every one is supposedly equal. Almost every one. For the past few years, I’ve noticed that some unknown entity has taken the liberty to declare certain months “(fill in your favorite race or lifestyle here) History Month”. For example, February is Black History Month, October is Explore-Your-Sexual- Orientation Month and March is Women’s History Month. Just about every month of the year celebrates somebody’s heritage. However, there still must be inequality in the system because I have never had the chance to honor my race, gender, or sexual orientation. Why? Be cause I am a white, heterosexual male. It has now become taboo to be white. Society is convinced that whites are the most bigoted, racist people in America. The KKK and extreme conservatives are constantly being exploited all over the talk show and tabloid TV circuit, leading a lot of people to believe that all whites are rac ists. I’m sorry to say that, just like gangs make up only a small per centage of the black community, and the majority of Hispanics are not illegal aliens, there are not many whites that fit the neo-nazi stereotype. Every time I hear about Caucasians in society, they are always the oppressors, threat ening to destroy the diversity of this nation. Who cares that in a short time, whites will be a mi nority? In a lot of places, they already are. In an age where feminism is taking major leaps, it has also be come wrong if you are bom male. According to certain “groups” in this country, I am a sexist, chau vinistic pig, wanting a female companion to do three things for It has now become taboo to be white. MONTH Before All dogs need exercise and the right diet to stay healthy, happy and fit. A Message From The American Kennel Club For a free Responsible Dog Ownership Packet write AKC, 5580 Centerview Dr., Raleigh, NC 27606. me: cook, clean, and fulfill my sexual desires. They consistently contend that men want to repress and degrade women, making them basically our personal slaves. Oh, yes, there is a strong sense of sexism in this country — against men. Take, for instance, the female that got into the Cita del. Had that been a male wanting to enter an all female school, the public would have been outraged, shaming the male. It is also now politically in correct to be a heterosexual and be openly proud of it. When I was twelve year§ old I saw a homo sexual parade, put on by the ho mosexual community for the public. To this day, seven and a half years later, I have neither heard about, nor seen a heterosexual parade. They claim they do not have the same status as heterosexuals, yet they have their own month, even a nationally recognized day, exploit ing their behavior/beliefs. When was the last time you saw a group of heterosexuals marching around and making out, in the streets, cry ing out, “We are straight, and proud of it!”? There is not enough time, nor enough room, though, to fully de fend my statuses in one measly column of a college newspaper, > which is why I am proposing that the month of April be declared National White, Heterosexual Male Month. This month would be divided into three 10 day sections. The first 10 days would focus on white his tory, and all the wonderful contri butions whites (both male and fe male) have made to society. The second part would con centrate on the celebrating the male gender, all races of it, and what great contributions men have given to society. The final portion would cover the joys of heterosexuality, a time when straight people would have the opportunity to come out of the closet with their homosexual friends. Every race and gender would be included for those 10 days. I don’t think that’s asking too terribly much. After all, females, homosexuals, and all the other races of the world each get a whole month for each category they fall under; we would be cramming three classifications into one month. If society has a problem with this proposal, then I suggest we get rid of all the heritage months. I was bom this way. I can’t change how I was bom. Laney Fouse Copy Editor groups. These include minori ties, women, people with dis Whenever a writer starts an abilities, homosexuals and oth article with a disclaimer such as ers previously marginalized. “I am not a racist, nor am I a chau I don’t agree that being vinistic pig,” I become suspi white is “taboo.” I have a lot of cious. Why do you feel a need to white friends who happen to be justify your position? nice people. I didn’t choose them Perhaps you don’t judge oth because of their skin color. The ers by their looks, beliefs, gen true spirit of friendship is identi der or sexual preferences. Al fied by what we give to one an though you do set your standards other as humans. of acceptance or tolerance based The nationally recognized on coolness. Just exactly what is months you speak of are celebra your definition of coolness? tions of people previously ig You say this is the basis of nored. What you have witnessed your philosophy. But isn’t phi for all of your nineteen and a half losophy a critical study of funda years are people like myself who mental beliefs and the have tired of being grounds for them? suppressed. People Multi Critical in this sense who are tired of the means careful judg prejudice and the dis culturalism ment not criticizing. crimination. These are What does coolness people who have for IS have to do with funda several years struggled mental values? nothing for equality. People Like you, I believe who want to end the new. everyone should be challenge of assimila treated equally. Unfor tion. People who for tunately, this has not been the too many years undergone what case. But, then again, we you must be feeling now. . wouldn’t have had anything to fill I agree that one day the white the pages of our history books. majority will probably become a It appears from your article that minority, perhaps even as early history is not your forte. Perhaps as the mid-2000’s. This is a good I can help. thing. Maybe we could then Multiculturalism is nothing achieve a better balance in our new. Long before the arrival of society where no particular group the first European explorers, the dominates. Maybe this would native Indian peoples were di- - eliminate the need for equal op- vèrste in thèfr languages, beliefs ■ portunity programs and politi and ways of life. cally correct terms. Later the importation of Af Furthermore, if females are rican slaves, Asian laborers and making such major leaps, how Mexican migrants brought fur come we get paid less to do the ther variety to the already Euro same job as a man? Why are we pean dominated society. still the ones to do the majority Some theorists believed that of the housework and raising by the early 1900’s the great children? American melting pot would lose If you truly believed every its differences and become one one should be treated equally, national identity. However, given 1 then you shouldn’t feel put upon the nature of humans, most pre because you’ ve been asked to sit fer to preserve their cultural iden in the back of the bus for a while. tities while participating in the If you want to be really offended, mainstream of American society. wait until the time comes when Over the course of the twen you have to prove your heritage. tieth century, Americans’ views Lgrew up on the Pinolevillè on diversity were transformed by Indian Reservation in Northern the Holocaust during World War California in what is a federally II, the Civil Rights and Women’s recognized tribe. Yet, I get in movements in the 1960’s, and the sulted every time that I must sharp rise in Asian and Latin prove my heritage by providing American immigration after a birth record, a Bureau of Indian 1965. Affairs enrollment number or By the mid 1980’s some Tribal affiliation. “multiculturalism” created pro Unfortunately, there isn’t found implications on educa- i enough room in this newspaper tional and public policy. Bound- to l fully explain what happened all aries formally set by the white, those I years before you were bom. heterosexual male dominated so- 1 Let’s just suffice to say that you ciety were forced to broaden be- have 1 nothing to whine about. Be yond racial, ethnic and religious ; sides...it’s not cool.
