To the Editor:
I was just reading Craig Elbert's article ("2005 enrollment sets records," The Dartmouth, May 4th") on the possible increase in admissions for the 2005 class, and I couldn't help but stop and think about one of the paragraphs, which highlighted the percentage of minority students applying.
"The 335 students of color, who make up 28.4 percent of the preliminary class, represent a jump from last year's numbers, when only 22.8 percent of the Class of 2004 were minorities. But the Class of 2005 is not quite as diverse as the current sophomores, 28.8 percent of whom are of color."
Perhaps there is no better way to state such statistics, but comparing statistics about exactly how many of one type of student are applying seems to be an objectification. It's like comparing specifications on computer models. I think it is about time that as a community we start treating everyone the same, in thoughts and words. If I were a student of minority background, I would have a serious problem with being used as a means to show off to the world how "diverse" Dartmouth is. I would want to be treated as an equal, not as a special asset of the school. Diversity is a term used nowadays to exhibit how many colors of skin you can represent. But it is also much more importantly about allowing each individual to entertain his or her own thoughts and feelings about issues, and being able to voice these issues. Diversity is about living and letting live. You cannot pride yourself in having a diverse community if people are charging at the Greek system for existing. Well, why should we ban the Greek system? What are they doing that is bad? I say we let houses exist if the students at the school are interested. I think that people are entitled to their own thoughts, and not necessarily those of the modern politically correct times.
I am not writing this letter to be critical of writers of The Dartmouth, but rather to offer an idea so that you can hopefully appreciate what it means truly to have a diverse but unified community. The only way to come together as a community is to work as one together. We cannot be united through separation or segregation based solely on special interests. When you are reporting about an event, say that the whole student body was involved, not just "the whites, blacks, Hispanics, women, etc." That kind of description is discrimination at its roots. I am Italian, Austrian and Hispanic, but I hardly consider myself special in any of these differences.
I just wanted to offer my thoughts on how we can improve our community: treat everyone equally, in thoughts, words, and actions. Everyone on this campus is in it together. So let's live as if we are united as one, not as a bunch of small separate groups.
