To the Editor:
Last night, the group known as Women of Color United held a discussion at the Women's Resource Center. It was advertised over BlitzMail as a discussion of the D'Souza-Masters debate held this past weekend.
This letter is not aimed at the content of last night's discussion. Indeed I would not be able to comment upon that. For I was not allowed to attend that discussion. I set up the debate, and it was open to all students. After the debate, Dartmouth United held a discussion, and it was open to all students. Yet last night, while I had missed the DU discussion and truly wanted to take part in the one at the WRC, I was not allowed to because I am a male.
I wrote Giavanna Munafo (WRC director) that "It hurts that I am banned from doing so simply because of my Y-gene." To which she responded, "... that the group exists for specific purposes that would not be served by making it open to men or white women," and that I could find other people to discuss with.
She is not incorrect -- I could make my own discussion. But that is far from the point. Some of my father's hard-earned money goes toward funding the Women's Resource Center, and the College supports it and yet, this event is off limits to me and every other male and white female at Dartmouth -- that is an exclusion of over 90 percent of the student body!
I am a member of the Conservative Union where we often have liberal students attend civilly and they are welcome. At the Young Democrats, the principle of non-discrimination also holds; as it does at AAm, DAO, La Allianza, or Women in Politics. But this group gets to discriminate by both race and sex!
If this bothers you, write Ms. Munafo and Yun Chung, the Women of Color United contact person. Tell them that you think Dartmouth has come a long way from sexual exclusion and should not march down that road again.
