COLUMN: A Separate, But Equal Renaissance

From Dan Schorr's "Behind Enemy Lines," Fall '94 The utter injustice inherent in this idea inspired some of this century's greatest leaders to bravely challenge the American system and fight for civil rights. These men and women would not tolerate living in a society in which citizens were relegated to their own demographic world. But with the recent establishment of Lambda Phi Epsilon, an Asian-American fraternity, and the possible colonizations of Kappa Delta Phi and Sigma Omicron Theta, two Asian-American sororities, the University has declared that the concept of racial segregation is acceptable. In fact, segregation is now desired, rigorously pursued, and attained at Penn. In a daring demonstration of "diversity," the University now offers fraternities for the Asian man, the black man, the Latino man, and, by ever-increasing default, the white man. Which group should you join? Look in the mirror and figure it out. Very progressive, don't you think? People need the opportunity to feel comfortable with others that are similar to themselves, the argument begins. In such homogeneous groups, students can learn about their own culture in a relaxed, social atmosphere. And, after all, it's only for the students who choose this option. But when Lambda Phi Epsilon throws its first party, on the same night as those of the ethnically-different fraternities, the dramatic results will be plain to see. An ever-increasing social schism will split the University further. In this system, will "individuals" attend festivities dominated by those with whom he feels most comfortable? Just look at other ethnically-defined fraternities and sororities. After all, despite the University's constant proclaiming of its "diverse" nature, it's difficult to find a single party on campus that supports this claim. The consequences of an Asian-American fraternity extend far beyond those of any ethnically oriented campus club. While a club simply involves meetings and functions for cultural awareness, a significantly greater portion of a fraternity member's life involves his organization. And, more importantly, the segregation of 40 brothers will no doubt influence others of the same ethnic persuasion. Will someone explain to freshman, during their diversity and sensitivity seminars, which parties are designed for their cultural interests? And now, of course, prospective students will have to attend at least four parties in order to appreciate the multiculturalism of the University – if they even have the guts to challenge these artificial boundaries. But what can the University do? Should the Escort system be redesigned for forced inter-fraternity busing? Maybe the University should simply declare that segregation will not be tolerated. No. Impossible. The precedent has already been set. If Lambda Phi Epsilon was denied colonization because a prime criteria for membership is race, rather than individual characteristics, the University would receive some very legitimate protests. What? African-American fraternities are acceptable, but Asian-American fraternities are not? What blatant discrimination! So now Penn will have an Asian-American fraternity and two sororities. And soon we'll have Eastern European fraternities, Southeast Asian fraternities, South American fraternities, Middle East fraternities, and South Shore Nassau County fraternities. All it takes is members of a minority group who wish to segregate themselves, and the University will take care of the rest. Ultimately, when every group has its own social, residential, and academic circle, administrators will be forced to say that if we are truly to be "one University," minimal integration between ethnic groups is essential. But we haven't yet reached that point. What message is the University sending to the world by establishing another fraternity whose primary focus is race? They're proclaiming that we've given up. For years, people have been working to encourage individuals to interact across cultural boundaries, and it's never worked. With the establishment of the Penn chapter of Lambda Phi Epsilon, the University is communicating that, since people just won't integrate successfully, we might as well cease trying. Last month's Doonesbury characterized the situation best when it depicted a representative of undergraduate minorities demanding segregated water fountains. Of course, this is just satire. In reality, the segregation revolves around beer. But, thankfully, the University is not completely throwing up its hands in desperation. The Commission on Strengthening the Community, is researching methods to encourage interaction among the University's many ethnic groups. Commission leaders have launched a broad survey of students to solicit information and suggestions to further this noble goal. But whatever the administration decides to do to help us realize the ideal of "one community," they will be working with a campus that has taken several steps back from its situation of just six months ago. Now members of another racial group will "feel comfortable" and live and socialize with students of the same race. And with various other minorities lobbying to designate the two vacant Locust Walk houses for specific ethnicities, the University's trend towards segregation seems far from over. Over 200 years ago, Ben Franklin gave the following advice to the signers of the Declaration of Independence for dealing with adversity: "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately." Today, the enemy is not King George, but stereotypes, misunderstanding, and mistrust. And our options for tearing these down are increasingly disappearing. Despite the possible merits of our founder's recommendation of unity, it seems that these words do not yet apply at Penn. Dan Schorr is a junior English major from Valley Stream, New York. Behind Enemy Lines appears alternate Fridays.