BU college republicans create white only scholarship

College Confidential Community
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<p>Well, I apologize if I "insinuated" that. In fact, I did not mean to imply that that is at all relevant to my argument. </p>

<p>I have always assumed that racism prevents minorities -of any status- from succeeding. I think this assumption is proven true by the facts of history. </p>

<p>I am not asserting that the Affirmative Action we have today is perfect. It is full of problems...it is not always desirable. HOWEVER, I am arguing that we must overlook its faults-that some unqualified minorities are granted positions (college, job) non-minorities are more qualified to fill because it is better than nothing. The long-term results of Affirmative Action -that minorities are empowered, not because of their skin color, but because of their merit and societal racism is diminished- is much more beneficial to our society and goal of democracy than the bumps along the way. Affirmative Action was never meant to produce immediate results, it is a long term process. We must look into the future, look down the road, when assessing Affirmative Action because changing a whole nation's attitudes is not fixed at the snap of Congress' fingers and racism took centuries to construct, so it will naturally take centuries to deconstruct. </p>

<p>I am not saying we should settle for an imperfect system. But until someone comes with a better way of achieving equality, instead of selfishly complaining such as that BU group, it would be dangerous and detrimental to our democracy and society to throw out AA altogether. As for right now, AA is all we have. It is has done much for minorities.</p>

<p>I will repeat...
Sometimes a dream takes centuries to achieve. MLK knew this. Abolitionists knew this. Amelia Bloomer knew this. Feminists knew this. Achieving equality of opportunity takes courage, focus, and sacrifice...sometimes it is frustrating...especially to a generation that is used to instant gratificiation...but if we never try, we will never achieve anything except more of the same racism. Do you think MLK thought he would stop fighting just because some might disagree? No. Do you think I'm going to not apply to University of Chicago, my dream school, just becuase I might be rejected? No. Do you think an athlete would rather not race than race at all becuase he might lose? No. Do you think George Washington thought it was better to have no republic that a republic at all just because it might mean failure? No. This is the human condition. And I'm sincerely sorry for you if you're ready to give up already.</p>

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<p>


The key word here is "might." </p>

<p>What if a third wrong is created to prove/stop the second wrong? That's not a possibility?</p>

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<p>^ Agreed. The rules of the kindergarten play ground just do not apply in this circumstance.</p>

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<p>
[quote]
No, but the second wrong might make the first wrong realize that it is in fact wrong and then stop the wrongness.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>we well know that this never works. and eye for an eye? please.</p>

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<p>
[quote]

Wow, I'm really surprised at how many of you misunderstand AA. The ORIGINAL goal of Affirmative Action was to extend opportunity to QUALIFIED minorities that societal racism would have prevented from receiving otherwise.

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<p>Nay, that was NOT the original goal.</p>

<p>The term affirmative action was coined by President John F. Kennedy. He said that employers should "take affirmative action to ensure that race, creed, color, or national origin did not play a part in their treatment of job applicants or employees."</p>

<p>That's all it was. No mention about quotas, group preferences, "level playing fields," and all that other politically correct crap. The idea was simple and humanist - NO group preferences.</p>

<p>vtoodler claims that "There are plenty of other scholarships available to whites." OK, but aren't these scholarships also available to anyone else? Like Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and Native Americans? They are, aren't they? Yeah...</p>

<p>I personally think that there's nothing wrong with recruiting "under-represented" minorities by targeting scholarships to them as long as the idea of a white-only scholarship is not considered racist.</p>

<p>There shouldn't be a double standard. That's a problem that race-based affirmative action has created. You can extend all sorts of benefits to preferential groups, and it's "right." But, the mere thought of giving these same benefits to whites results in cries of "racist", "bigot", "reactionary", or "idiot." Trying to extend similar benefits to Asians produces arguments like "they don't need it," or "they didn't experience the same discrimination as we did," or even "they're OVER-REPRESENTED."</p>

<p>Politics should be kept out of admissions.</p>

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<p>^ According to the Standford University Encyclopedia:</p>

<p>"Affirmative action” means positive steps taken to increase the representation of women and minorities in areas of employment, education, and business from which they have been historically excluded."</p>

<p>According to Wikipedia:
"Affirmative action began as a corrective measure[1] for governmental and social injustices against demographic groups that have been said to be subjected to discrimination in areas such as employment and education. The stated goal of Affirmative Action is to sufficiently counter past discrimination such that a strategy will no longer be necessary: the power elite will reflect the demographics of society at large."</p>

<p>According to infoplease.com:
"
Issued by President Johnson, the executive order requires government contractors to "take affirmative action" toward prospective minority employees in all aspects of hiring and employment. Contractors must take specific measures to ensure equality in hiring and must document these efforts. On Oct. 13, 1967, the order was amended to cover discrimination on the basis of gender."</p>

<p>The original goal of Affirmative Action was to eliminate societal racism at the crux and reverse the attitudes of society. By eliminating "race, creed, color, or national origin" as factors, minorities would thus be given equal and fair treatment. THAT was the goal of Affirmative Action, everything else aside. However, naturally, AA has warped and evolved with society, and that is not what AA is today. I am not arguing about what is right or wrong, I am merely stating that AA has changed, but I am also not saying it has changed for the worse. I asserted that AA was an imperfect system, but not worth throwing out altogether.</p>

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<p>Wait, shouldn't people be able to do whatever they want with their money (so long as it is not drugs, murder, or anything very illegal)? If BU students want a scholarship for white only students, they should be able to have one and noone should really care (except white students who may need the money). There are more poor whites than poor blacks and hispanics in America. If there are black and hispanic and women only scholarships, there should also be scholarships only for white males. Not every white male is filthy rich and able to pay for college. If I want to open up a scholarship fund, I should be able to award the money to whomever I please, whether it is white males or transgender Alaskan natives and noone should complain about the way I spend MY money.</p>

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<p>Sure. If you want to go buy crack cocaine...OK then. If you want to start a private school for whites...OK then. Trust me, I'm well versed in freedom of choice and personal liberty...I'm the most social-est Libertarian you'll meet (i.e. Milton Friedman, btw, I said SOCIAL, Democrat representin' otherwise!)</p>

<p>The problem comes when the school is federally funded or receives government money, which is how most scholarships work. </p>

<p>I should correct you on one tiny thing though. I do not believe what you said was relevant to the discussion. The BU group was not creating a whites-only scholarship to prove their individual autonomy to do so...they were attacking AA as racist.</p>

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<p>All of you talk "white" this and "white" that as if you knew what you were talking about, but who is white and who is not? Whiteness has historically been less of a racial issue and more of a social one. There was once a time in America that it was unthinkable to consider Germans, Irish, Italians (and other Mediterannean Europeans) as white, and there is still some debate about that, especially that last group. Of course, when juxtaposed against the great "other" (blacks), a lot of people look "white", even Asians (model minority, anybody?). But when there's something like scholarships at stake, there are many questions that kick in.</p>

<p>1) Are Jews white? If no, then what do you do about the WASP kid with a Jewish grandmother? If yes, then why do Jews get to be accepted as white but then are still able to play the anti-Semitism card as if they are still outsiders?</p>

<p>2) What about 1st generation white immigrants whose parents were born in other countries? Are they not foreigners?</p>

<p>3) What about biracial or multiracial people who look really white with Anglo last names?</p>

<p>4) What about dark-skinned Mediterannean types?</p>

<p>Creating a whites only scholarship is particularly difficult because as I said, no other race group has changed its definition so many times in American history.</p>

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<p>Hahaha another thing that makes me want to go to BU. This is freakin hilarious :P</p>

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<p>Whites and asians can be excluded from scholarships - that is OK - and URMs can be given 300 to 500 points added to their SAT scores - that too is OK</p>

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<p>Let's try not to turn this into another affirmative action thread. I'll try to change the subject. Is anyone actually going to apply for this scholarship?</p>

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<p>Note that Senator Barack Obama would qualify as he is 50% caucasian</p>

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<p><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2004/EDUCATION/02/15/whites.only.ap/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.cnn.com/2004/EDUCATION/02/15/whites.only.ap/&lt;/a>
Already tried:(
Eww anyhows.</p>

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<p>To: Nbchris
If you look at US Supreme Court precedents on what they deem White, you will find a very lengthy, but firm answer. There is over a hundred years of USSCJ court cases that define who is White and Who is not, and thus in the census they will be counted accordingly. If there should be any dispute in who receives the scholarship, all one has to do is present proof of descent and refer to the law for guidance.</p>

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<p>
[quote]
If you look at US Supreme Court precedents on what they deem White, you will find a very lengthy, but firm answer. There is over a hundred years of USSCJ court cases that define who is White and Who is not, and thus in the census they will be counted accordingly. If there should be any dispute in who receives the scholarship, all one has to do is present proof of descent and refer to the law for guidance.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Since you seem to know all about this question of mine, can you summarize the Supreme Court's definition?</p>

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<p>its funny because there are "african american" scholarships everywhere</p>

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<p>"its funny because there are "african american" scholarships everywhere"</p>

<p>There are also Jewish scholarships everywhere and Polish scholarships everywhere also. </p>

<p>But why do blacks and latinos get so much flack for having their own scholarship? Is it wrong for blacks to try to empower themselves, especially since they've been oppressed so long?</p>

<p>Yesterday, I read an article in TIMES magazine about high school dropouts. The article stated that about 50% of all blacks and latinos drop out of high school. Often times, these students don't drop out of choice--some do it because of familal pressures, financial pressures, or pressure from school administrators. By having programs such as AA, we help to open the doors of higher education and socio-economic change for URMs. </p>

<p>The sad truth is that many of them are suffering, and they need societal help. AA and scholarship is one way to offer them this help.</p>

<p>However, I do agree with everyone else in the sense that AA cannot last forever. I think that it should only last long enough for URMs to catch up (which hopefully will be within a half century).</p>

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<p>some, you used the word some
if there's some black kid who can pay his way through his college or isnt oppressed or live in poverty, then should AA not apply to him?</p>

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<p>"Yesterday, I read an article in TIMES magazine about high school dropouts. The article stated that about 50% of all blacks and latinos drop out of high school. Often times, these students don't drop out of choice--some do it because of familal pressures, financial pressures, or pressure from school administrators."</p>

<p>Yet they same groups constantly whine about the LACK OF OPPORTUNITY IN AMERICA.</p>

<p>Right, I really believe they are being FORCED to drop out - some type of conspiracy against them I bet</p>