GUEST COLUMN: Crossing the Racial Divide

Ignorant'ig-n(e-)rent adj 1 a: destitute of knowledge or education, an (ignorant) society; also: lacking knowledge or comprehension of the thing specified b: resulting from or showing lack of knowledge or intelligence 2: UNAWARE, UNINFORMED. On Wednesday evening, at around 11:30 p.m., a group of black students were congregated in Superblock. Among this group were Zeta Phi Beta sisters who were celebrating after "crossing the line," a term use to describe their initiation. A few ignorant individuals (and, I am using the term in the strictest sense of the word), after yelling "shut-up" from the top of High Rise North, proceeded to throw water balloons and firecrackers down on the students. I would enjoy meeting the individuals responsible for Wednesday's display of blatant ignorance. Did you think your actions were amusing? What did you expect to accomplish as you proceeded to strike the match you used to light the firecrackers? In that one split second when you had the chance to blow out that match, did your conscience make you think, even for one second, that you were unjustified? I can list thousands of questions I have for you, but I know that none of them will be answered. The reason, simply, is that you are cowards. You obviously do not have enough respect for yourself to give a damn about the feelings of other individuals. I cannot offer an explanation for your actions, but I can tell you what you accomplished Wednesday night. You managed to instill anger and hatred within every individual present, including myself. You also managed to demonstrate how the racial tensions that are rampant throughout the nation do not stop at the gates of Penn. Your actions demonstrate how bleak our future is if Penn students are indeed the leaders of tomorrow. Your hateful display of ignorance offended every individual present because of its racial overtones. Stunned and angered by the actions of these (obviously "uneducated") individuals, I could list hundreds of adjectives describing how I feel about them. I could also list numerous adjectives describing what I think of their parents and the society that bred hatred and racism into their consciousness. However, I do not want to use language that would bring me down to the level of ignorance demonstrated by these individuals on Wednesday. I do not believe that anyone on campus can deny that this was a racial incident. My apartment faces a row of white (not the paint color) fraternity houses. Despite the constant noise, fighting, and drunken shouting that radiates from these frats, I have never witnessed anyone "protesting" the noise by throwing firecrackers at the individuals below. However, when a group of Zeta Phi Beta sisters gather to celebrate a society which ties them to their cultural heritage and identity, they are chastised. Penn, a school which seemingly prides itself on cultural diversity and widespread acceptance of this diversity, is obviously not succeeding in its quest for "political correctness." Minority students are often treated as "tokens," and are exploited by universities to make their minority statistics look impressive. Minority students have to establish themselves as equal members of a community of scholars, and not as "token guests." These students have to prove themselves and their "worth" according to the standards set by a white dominated society. However, many educated minorities are often labeled as "sell-outs" by representative individuals of their heritage when they attempt to integrate into this society. Minority students must also prove themselves to their own race, and are consequently torn between two conflicting worlds. Presently, it seems that there is no "happy medium" which is tolerable for the individual and, at the same time, is acceptable to both worlds. Human beings are essentially individuals with different ideas and rationales. These differences often make it impossible for certain people to get along. But a biased hatred for an entire race of individuals based on stereotypes and ill-feelings, cannot be justified along the lines of these individual differences. Acting on these biases and physically endangering other individuals because of these differences demonstrates more than simple ignorance. No apologies can right the wrong that was committed by those individuals in High Rise North. No workshops, letters, articles or seminars can change the impact the ignorant actions of these individuals had on their victims. As a silent observer, I know that I will never forget the anger and hatred I felt as I witnessed the event. Derogatory terms such as "cracker" and "nigger" stem from both ignorance and the inability of most people to accept people different from themselves. I did not invent these terms, and I do not condone the use of them to describe individuals who are "white" or "black." Their presence in our vocabulary is as real as the presence of racism in our society. Many people believe that if you ignore a problem, it will simply go away. I strongly disagree with this statement, and I hope that the individuals who were involved in this incident are forced to face consequences for their actions.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.