The rally on Friday protesting recent incidents of intolerance and insensitivity has elicited both approbation and criticism from diverse quarters. As for myself, had all of this occurred last year when I was an idealistic freshman, I would have criticized it. But it has occurred this year; and I, as a sophomore who has come of age, endorse it with resignation.
I used to believe that racial prejudice will die a natural death when adequate interaction between the various ethnic groups is established and ethnic groups become sufficiently diverse and integrated into mainstream society. I envisioned a society where the color of one's skin provided information about the amount of melanin present in the skin, and nothing more. Society had failed to reach that state only because of the temporary linkage between one's culture and one's race. But it was definitely something we could work to accomplish. It could happen. Racism would end. It was with this in mind that I would have criticized Friday's rally as an event that differentiates minorities and delays the progress towards racial integration and the end of racism.
But I'm not so sure anymore. I'm not so sure that racial integration would automatically mean the end of racism. The human mind is always looking to simplify. If it observes an individual of Race X behaving a certain way, it cannot help but attribute that behavior to Race X, with the provision that there will always be exceptions. This is the human condition and there is nothing we can do about it. We can't help but be racists at heart.
So now that I see no end to racism, I turn my attention to what I can do to prevent overt acts of racism. All I'm interested in now is preventing people from acting on their prejudices no matter what they think. My definition of racism has changed. All those who form opinions about a person based on his race used to be a racist in my book. But if I go by this definition, everyone is a racist. So now, a racist is just somebody who acts on those opinions. Society may not be able to control what people think. But it sure can control what they do. Now here is something that can be legislated and enforced not only through legal channels, but also by creating minority organizations that will pounce on errant individuals and direct social opprobrium at them by holding rallies.
And that is what the rally last Friday was all about. Let's be honest and acknowledge that. Its real message wasn't one of love or friendship between the various groups on campus. It didn't move anybody one step along the road to racial solidarity. It was a show of force by the "minorities camp" designed to intimidate people into refraining from overtly expressing racism. You do such things to us, and we'll do this to you. You write "chink" and "bastard" on our door and we'll hold you up in public as objects of disgrace.
I see this rally as having a contradicting effect on people's minds. It discourages individuals from expressing their racist sentiments while encouraging those racist sentiments. Any activity or organization that is created in the spirit of "Minorities vs. the Rest of the World" cannot help but promote racism. Tell me that we don't need to resort to such organizations to artificially restrain the racism that it is inculcating. Tell me that we don't need to change our definition of racism in order to make race blind society a possibility. Tell me I'm wrong.
