To the Editor:
As a white male, I have this question that might shed light on our "racist" non-consideration of race ("Thesis raises troubling questions about race at College," May 29):
How often do you think about the air you breathe? Probably not much, unless or until you happen to get a scented or tainted breath.
I imagine that's basically the position MOST humans have concerning race. It's probably why self-segregation occurs: in an all-black gathering, how often does an individual's "blackness" come up as an issue?
Until race becomes an issue, as when I was told by the Clinton Department of Transportation that I could not be hired because I was not an Hispanic woman, white males just do not consider their race. It's a non-topic.
I don't think this makes most white males racist. Thoughtless, perhaps. Studies like Mr. Trouille's, and the discussions they engender, are effective tools for preventing and combatting such thoughtlessness. So keep them coming.
Just don't get so caught up in the issue that you forget to breathe.
