In his critique of Duke's affirmative action policies and how they foster facial segregation, Paul Musselwhite neglected to consider how the tactless expression of opinions such as his have impacted Duke's racial climate.
I am not a frequent reader of The Chronicle, but it has come to my attention that each time I open it I am blown away by the ignorance that people like Musselwhite so freely display. It is clear from his letter to the editor that Musselwhite believes each black student here at Duke is an affirmative action candidate. While failing to recognize that affirmative action policies have been most beneficial for women and the handicapped, Musselwhite alleges that the SAT scores of blacks are generally 200 points lower than the scores of their white peers.
I do not know if Musselwhite is white, but I am going to make the assumption that he is. If he has a problem with affirmative action, he should blame it on his white ancestors who implemented the injustices that now justify the employment of affirmative action.
I do not often refer to the slavery contention, however, at the moment I find it rather necessary. Blacks were enslaved, and when that institution was abolished, efforts were continually made to keep them disenfranchised and disadvantaged. The fact that slavery and discrimination have affected every aspect of the lives of blacks is why affirmative action was proposed and why its use is still necessary.
As for the segregation that exists on Duke's campus, do not attribute it to affirmative action practices; instead, acknowledge that it is a direct consequence of the fact that there are members of Duke's white community that share your views. Since opinions are not as "clearly identifiable" as physical attributes, it becomes difficult to isolate those whites from others; therefore, in order to avoid contact with individuals who are equally as ignorant and uninformed as Musselwhite, some blacks just choose to align themselves with those like them, and that is what now facilitates the segregation on this campus.
Bianca Forde
Trinity '05
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