OPINION 7
“1 do not agree with what you have to say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it.” - Voltaire
Hiings Are Not Always Black and White:
Rebuttal
Samuel Hemingway, III
This letter is a rebuttal to an anicle published in the Lance entitled,
“Things are not always black and white.” This information is for all those St.
Andrews students who left the club fair without knowing about the Black
Student Union (BSU), and were disappointed that students needed their skin
color to form a union. Ask yourself the following: Did I speak with the woman
at the BSU booth? Did I ask her any questions? If you didn’t then you should
have. What is the Black Student Union? What does this organization promote?
An important thing to remember, or to become aware of, is that this club does
not base its membership on race. It is open to all students enrolled at St. An
drews. If the author of the Lance article had asked the above questions, or had.
been to any Black Student Union meetings, he would have known what this
club represents. This club, to the best of its ability, intends to inform people of
the struggles and contributions of African Americans. I cannot help but agree
with my colle^ue on certain issues and assumptions but I disagree with my
colle^ue on his impression of the Black Student Union and his conception of
multiculturalism. Why have such a club? The question can be compared to an
other question; Why do I read? The answer would be to become informed. The
name black in the title Black Student Union is by no means a way to separate
people. However, the name is centralized on what the club studies and focuses.
The club promotes knowledge for the sake of knowledge. I am overjoyed that
St. Andrews has such a club.
When I was in high school we didn’t have a Black Student Union. The
only time I was informed about African Americans was during Black History
Month in my church. Three Sundays out of the year I was taught black history.
In high school, the only time we learned of blacks was in history class, while
studying Pre-civil war and Post-civil war periods, and when we examined the
Civil Rights movements, where we only focused on Rosa Parks and Rev. Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr.
What if a White Student Union (WSU) was established? Would it be
any different fi’om my regular course work that I study daily? Every day I am
bombarded with mainstream culture and Euro-centric values. I would be one
of the most loyal members of the WSU depending on what it fostered. The
author mistakes the club with racial identity, which could have been remedied
if he asked questions pertaining to the BSU. The author then begins to fo
cus on multiculturalism, which is the doarine that several different cultures
can co-exist peacefully and equitably in a single country. The author writes,
“multiculturalism is bad for America” and “race and culture are two mitigating
faaors.” What if this country, or world had only one worldview? The question
sparks my memory to George Orwell’s book 1984. The government of Oceania
systematically enforced uniformity, forcing individuals to forsake past history
and culture.
Our differences are what make us unique but still American. I love all
types of music, however, when a nice slow R&B song grabs my ear, I can’t help
but get to my feet and dance. To watch the sisters dance at the BSU parties,
reminds me of the deep tribal ceremonial dances of Africa.
On the opinion of race, 1 agree with Gilbert Abraham: “Race doesn’t
exist.” What this means is that in a so-called race you have a variety of complex
ions. One white male may be pale and another white male may be tan. Hence,
to classify them both as the same color (race) would be ideally unfiiir. I also
s^ree with author Toni Morrison, “Race is the most insignificant information
to know about a person.” The author of the article, however, writes, “And those
with a non-American worldview have as their foundational identity not only
in ideas themselves, but in the race of the jserson who holds them.” This open-
ended statement implies that racial identity is in collaboration with culture.
Race and culture are two very different things, which the author recognizes but
doesn’t convey. One’s beliefe, attitudes, and ideas have nothing to do with one’s
race. The aa of racism is hatred of someone based on his or her race and race
alone. To dislike a person of a particular color because of their opinions, beliefs,
and worldviews is not an issue of race, it is an issue of culture. The conflia of
worldview is an individual freedom to disagree. To connea one’s worldview to
one’s race is to accept that all people of a race think the same. The author also
writes a scenario of racial discrimination. A black atheist requesting a leadership
position in a Christian church that is predominately white is a situation worth
thinking about. The church refuses the black atheist. Can the black atheist sue
the predominately white Christian church on racial discrimination? Suing the
church would be justifiable if race was used in the decision-making process
exclusively. The author is addressing affirmative aaion in this last sce
nario. Remember that affirmative aaion is a policy that tries to remedy
past and present discrimination through means of equal opportunity in
education and employment. As I said before, if the predominately white
Christian church denied the black atheist employment based upon his
race alone, then grounds for a lawsuit are present.
The author writes, “In the multicultural mind’s eye, as a black
person, they should think black thoughts, which are assumed to be lib
eral or non-Christian.” Here is where the author and I mainly disagree.
His conception of multiculturalism is inaccurate. Race has nothing to do
with multiculturalism. The appreciation, tolerance, and equity of culture
have nothing at all to do with race. People’s aaions are not a produa of
their race. If I am a white male who plays basketball like Michael Jordan,
am I acting black? Or am I a white male who plays basketball well? If I
am a black male who loves wearing Abercrombie and Fitch instead of
FUBU and Sean John, am I aaing white? Or am I a black male who just
loves wearing such attire? The above statement is again a misconception
of multiculturalism because it assumes that multiculturalism views all
blacks as both liberal and non-Christian. In disagreeing with the author,
I find that the above statement is mirrored as a stereotype and prejudg-
ment of blacks. Multiculturalism docs not mean that I think the same
way as another black male or female. One black person may believe
that ganja (weed) is the coolest thing in the world. Another may believe
that it is horrible. One person of a particular race does not represent the
entire race. Again, this is not a racial issue. It is one that deals with indi
vidual preference.
Even if multiculturalism assumes that black persons have black
thoughts, which it doesn’t, how in the world were those black thoughts
thought to be non-Christian, especially in America? Remember that
before slavery, blacks were thought of as being heathens because they
did not worship the same God as their white counterparts, which was
one reason for society’s acceptance of slavery. Once we were in America,
blacks were forced to worship the God of America’s forefathers. Thanks
to the bent backs and worn out knees of black ancestry, through their
prayers and supplication, an end to slavery was created through the
thirteenth amendment. To assume black thoughts are non-Christian is
laughable. A Judeo-Christian worldview, which is what many African
Americans had been forced to accept, is the same worldview that led to
reasons for slavery (The “Curse” of Ham). This so called “curse” is found
in Genesis 9: 20-27 when Noah’s son Ham finds him drunk in his tent
and sees his ftithers’ nakedness. What people don’t realize is that (a man’s
nakedness) in those biblical days meant his wife unclothed. You can find
the meaning of this in Leviticus 18: 7-8. However, in Leviticus 20: 11,
“to uncover a father’s nakedness” is to lay with his wife. So, Ham had
had intercourse with Noah’s wife, his mother. When Noah woke and re
alized this, he didn’t curse Ham or his wife, however, Canaan was cursed.
Ham’s offspring who are said to be people of dark complexion.
I am not against Christianity by any means. My father is a Mis
sionary Baptist Pastor so I was in church every time the doors opened
because I unlocked them. So, to end my rebuttal I would love to invite
each and every member of St. Andrews, regardless of race or religion to
the Black Student Union meetings. 1 would also advocate that each stu
dent dwell on my and my colleague’s comments and develop your own
perception of multiculturalism. Racism, as painful as it is to admit, still
exists.
The Grey Area:
The Difference Between Black and White
Gilbert Abraham and Matt Peak
Staff Writers
The following is an online chat that took place between Gilbert
Abraham and Matthew Peak regarding the column and issues brought
forth in the first edition of the Lancc. It has been edited for spelling
only as per the j^reement between the pair and the Lance editing staff.
Gilbert: ok, the best way to start is by bringing up your inai^ural ar
ticle in previous Lance
Gilbert: what motivated you to write that?
Matthew: As I was growing up, I was always taught that racial titles
were superficial and not a good way to identify one’s self. Having spent
three and a half years of high school in Pulaski, Tennessee, one the birth
(continued on page 10)
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Lance staff or St. Andrews Presbyterian College.