Editor:
I am writing in response to Melissa Prentice's Nov. 21 article "Students seek course diversity." I felt that the article only portrayed one viewpoint, and now I would like to portray another. What right does the US Committee have to complain about the diversity in education? As it is right now, students are already required to take non-Western history and concepts classes, which actually comprise a large part of the general education requirement. By advocating that there be more non-Western class requirements, the US Committee is not only advocating adding classes to an already rigorous four-year graduation schedule, but they are being unfair to white students on campus.
All students at the UA are required to take classes on non-Western civilization and minority education, but are students required to take classes on white history and education? The answer is no because if it was required, the classes would be labelled as KKK classes. I agree that students at the UA should expand their horizons and take classes about people and civilizations that they are unfamiliar with, but this new proposal is not just proposing the expansion of such classes, it is proposing to shove these classes down the students' throats.
I consider myself probably one of the least racist people I know, and by writing this article, I know that I will probably be considered a racist by some, but I feel that the propositions made by the US Committee are racist in themselves. They are supposed to promote the equality of all students on campus, not just minorities. By supporting only non-Western and minority classes, the members of the US Committee are being explicitly racist and biased against white students on campus. If I am forced to learn about other cultures and races, then other cultures and races should be forced to learn about me. That would be true equality in education.
Melissa Meister
Molecular and Cellular Biology Freshman