About 25 members of the Conservative Union At Dartmouth met last night to informally debate Dinesh D'Souza's book "The End of Racism" and discuss race relations at Dartmouth, in anticipation of D'Souza's visit to the College this weekend.
This Sunday, D'Souza, a member of the Class of 1983, will debate Government Professor Roger Masters on the problem of racism in American society.
The debate is sponsored by CUAD.
In a short and informal debate, Kishan Putta '96 took the position expounded by D'Souza in "The End of Racism" while John Honovich '97 argued the opposing viewpoint.
Following their formal arguments, the two debaters elaborated their main points in an open discussion.
Putta said black people need to focus inward on the problems afflicting their race.
He pointed to the difficulty black men have being picked up by cab drivers who feel less safe with them in the car. Even Jesse Jackson said he would prefer to be followed by a white man as opposed to a black in a dark alley, Putta said.
"Anti-discrimination policies of the government prevent the black race from looking inward," he said.
Jim Brennan '96 voiced a different opinion of D'Souza's book. "Doesn't anyone besides me find it strange and somewhat disturbing that someone is advocating discrimination?" he said.
CUAD also debated race relations at Dartmouth. While some members said they felt the issue of racism has declined over the years, the discussion turned to what one person referred to as the "de facto segregation in Food Court."
"In Food Court, all the black people sit together," Sarah LeSure '97 said. "Years ago, they fought to share the same water fountain as whites, but maybe today they want their own."
But several audience members said they felt people simply dine with whom they are most comfortable.
John McWilliams '99, the only African-American in the crowd, closed the discussion by addressing the question of individuality and the tendency of people to lump the races together.
"He [John Honovich] may like macaroni and cheese, and I may not," McWilliams said.
"But, the main common denominator is that we are all human beings," McWilliams said.
Before the debate, two representatives from the Pat Buchanan campaign distributed literature and volunteer cards to students.
A coordinator for Buchanan's Dartmouth campaign said although Buchanan's visit was initially scheduled for the first week of December, it has been tentatively rescheduled for early January.
