I am a white, heterosexual, able-bodied male. I'll admit it: my first reaction to the email regarding the Psi U incident was probably not unique among all the other white, heterosexual guys on this campus. In a nutshell, my initial reaction was this: What's the big deal?! From what I could tell, this was just another overreaction--another example of hypersensitivity from the well-intentioned, politically correct individuals of our campus.
It was easy for me to excuse the action of the guys at Psi U. My thinking went roughly along these lines: So some stupid, (probably) drunk guys were acting stupid and drunk. Is it really worth this fuss? Okay, so they may have frightened one female student. Big deal! This stuff goes on all the time all over the place. It's really not worth making a fiasco over. They're just words, after all. My advice to the "victim," get over it!
Guys yell and act rude all the time; they do it on college campuses all over the country; they do it from Greek houses and non-Greek houses. It's hard for me to even understand what this Ms. Anonymous was even frightened and offended about. Guys yelled at her, she yelled back. Granted, it wasn't a polite exchange. Of course she's a little upset about it
But, let me remind you--I am a white, heterosexual, able-bodied male.
Of course I have difficulty understanding why she was intimidated; I don't have to live with the perpetual threat of rape or sexual assault. Of course I have a hard time understanding why she was so deeply offended; my gender has not suffered (and does not continue to suffer) from the calamities of an inherently sexist society; I don't have to worry about being paid less for the same job as another man.
The same can be said of the racial overtones of the remarks as well. Of course it's easy for me to excuse them. Of course I have difficulty understanding why they are considered so offensive. The people of my race have never been systematically subjugated by our society; the people of my race have never had to suffer the burden of being the exception to the American Dream. They were never enslaved, were never stripped of their homeland, were never forced to suffer the horrors of genocide. I am a white, heterosexual, able-bodied male -- of course it's difficult for me to understand: it's difficult for me to understand anything having to do with racism or sexism. I simply cannot identify, cannot empathize.
I have a question for all the other white, heterosexual, able-bodied males of Dartmouth: Do you notice the air you breathe?
Of course you don't. That is, you don't unless you find yourself in a space that doesn't have as much air. The only time you are even aware that air exists is perhaps when you hold your breath, or when you reach a very high altitude or when you begin to drown. In these cases, you notice the air you don't have, the air you lack -- the air you need. That is when you become conscious of air -- when you no longer have as much of it.
The same can be said of social and civil liberties. Those of us who have lived most of our lives without ever having been denied our social and civil rights have a severely limited perspective -- we hardly notice that these liberties even exist. Sure, people tell us we have them; we understand our right to be considered equal under the law just like we understand the fact that we require oxygen to live. But neither explanation has very much significance to us until we are denied our needed supply of oxygen, or until we are denied our right to equality. When we begin to suffocate, we realize, "My God, I do need oxygen to live after all," because it hurts to be without it. It is the pain of suffocation that awakens our consciousness to our need for oxygen. When we are denied our civil rights, our dignity and our sense of equality, it is the pain of oppression that awakens our consciousness to our need for equality and social justice.
This is why we white, heterosexual, able-bodied males have such difficulty empathizing with women, with minorities and with disabled people; they are claiming the loss of things we are hardly aware we even have. Moreover, they are pointing to events we have never experienced and they are enduring a pain we have never felt.
Similar to others like me, my heterosexuality, my masculinity, my able-bodiedness and my whiteness have provided enough of a social buffer to prevent me from having to suffer from much of the pervasive injustices of our society. For this reason, it is difficult for me to even recognize that this injustice exists at all. But, as many white heterosexual, able-bodied males will be quick to point out, this does not mean that I have not had to work hard; it does not translate to my having led an easy life. But it does, however, mean I have led an easier life than others. It is not that I, or any other heterosexual, able-bodied, white males have necessarily been given any more in life, it is simply that we have been denied less.
I am making a plea to my white brothers -- particularly those who are also heterosexual and without disabilities; please make an effort to recognize what you have, and even more importantly, recognize what others do not have. I am referring to the intangible, rather than the material; I am referring to equality, dignity, courtesy, the right to due process of the law, etc. I am speaking of the right to not be assumed to be less capable than you are. I am speaking of your right not live in fear of being raped or sexually assaulted. I am speaking of your right not have to live with the heavy burdens of a legacy of oppression and injustice.
If you were at the dinner table and someone began to choke, you would help him or her. Even though you breathe with ease, even though there is abundant oxygen available in the air, when someone indicates that they are choking, you come to their aid. The women and minorities who share our campus and our society are indicating to us that they need our help -- that they are choking. Are we going to laugh and tell them they're just overreactin? Are we going to accuse them of being hypersensitive? Are we going to say, "There's plenty of air to breathe. Look at me, I'm not having any trouble?" I sincerely hope not. When a woman writes to an entire campus to say that she feels threatened, offended and hurt, she is indicating to us that the women and minorities of Dartmouth are suffering injustices on this campus. They are asking for help. We, as those of the majority -- those of the least oppressed -- must come to their aid before they no longer choose to seek it.
