Recently racial issues have risen to the surface of campus issues. It is in our “Most Diverse” ranking by Newsweek. It is in the letters to the editor about Harambee and the “black section” in Tiger Stadium. In the politically correct environment we have created, we fear airing our true feelings about race because the response is often “he or she is racist,” or “he or she is overly sensitive and emotional about race.” Our true feelings about race are established, tested and reinforced on a daily basis.
We cannot deny that race is the undercurrent of much of what goes on at LSU. It is in the racial distribution in the residence halls. It is in class when the teacher asks a person of color to speak on behalf of their entire race, as though they are of one thought. It is in every conversation about the Confederate flag and every discussion about how horrible slavery was, or was not. It is the awkward silence, the emphatic pause; it is the underlying tension; it is silent, ever-present and hovering in the minds of thousands of people as they interact on a daily basis.
It is race. It is what you see when you look at someone for the first time, and it is what you assume or try to decipher from their diction and tone over the phone.
Race is a particularly relevant issue in Louisiana. In Louisiana, where tours are given of the beautiful plantation homes, but the slaves who built the homes, maintained the land and secured the wealth are whitewashed from the history. In Louisiana, where the army fought so fiercely against the Union Army and against an end to slavery that they were named the “Fighting Tigers.”
In America there is a race problem; in Louisiana there is a race problem; on the campus of the most diverse university in the country, there is a race problem, and something must be done about it.
My home state, Illinois, has the phrase “Land of Lincoln” emblazoned on its license plates. It is the state’s way of paying homage to the president who is famous for ending the Civil War and freeing the slaves while simultaneously taking ownership in his brave and humanitarian actions. The phrase on the license plates is a testament to the way Illinois deals with race. We pride ourselves on our history and hide behind the truth, that racism and prejudice exists, even in the north.
But Lincoln’s actions that Illinois prides itself on are not the result of Lincoln’s racial sensitivity, inherent good nature or desire to do that which was right. In my experience, the ideals, mentality and principles we assume that Northerners and northern states possess are really no different from those of Southerners or southern states. Today it is the same racism in Illinois and Louisiana that most often upsets, isolates and divides us. This racism is not caused solely by the desire of individuals to be insensitive or to display ill will and do things to purposely hurt others. The things that prevent LSU from being the model for diversity and harmony are not only use of racial slurs and cultural insensitivity, it is the little things that make the difference in the way we choose to interact with and view each other.
Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Union Ballroom New York Times writer Lena Williams is coming to speak about her book titled “It’s the Little Things: Everyday Interactions That Anger, Annoy and Divide the Races.” After writing an article about “The Little Things,” Williams, a 25-year veteran of The New York Times, embarked on a journey that took her across the country to meet with people from all racial, cultural and ethnic backgrounds to discuss race. Her book is the result of her research.
The full value of the college experience is reached only when your thoughts and opinions are challenged, and your mind is opened to new ideas. I am confident that some of the things Williams will say will make us uncomfortable. But everything in life is not meant to be comfortable. We may find that there are things we do daily, to people we know and respect, that are racially and culturally offensive, and the discomfort we feel may be the only motivation we ever have to change that behavior. If we are ever to achieve the dream Dr. King died for and live the way I believe God intended for us to – in harmony – as His children, we must begin to understand and appreciate the feelings of others and the forces that continually keep us apart.