4 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, January 10, 1994 US1E £iian ?OUiIQ 420 Maynard Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan i yW"i e**" DALY JOSH Duiow Editor in Chief ANDREw LEVY Editorial Page Editor Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of the Daily editorial board. All other cartoons, articles and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily. " I. S- , V_ Black is not a synonym for anything By STEN CARLSON "He is Blaaack." The young man spoke highly of his talented teammate. Let us further scrutinize this statement; perhaps we may understand the motivation behind it. This statement was given as a description of a highly talented high school running back. Superficially, the statement seems harmless; however, the insidious monster of racism lurks below it. Out of context, it is difficult to understand the true meaning of the young man's statement. The word Black is used to describe a very fleet-footed individual. It was left up to me to know that "He is Blaaack" is a metaphor for being fast. The fact that an ethnic identity was used to describe a physical attribute is very upsetting. Perhaps the young man was simply describing the ethnic identity of the individual. Although this is plausible, it is unlikely. The description would have been totally out of context; the conversation was on football, not racial issues. Furthermore, does the fact that this individual is Black have any shred of relevance to the fact that he is an excellent running back? Either way, it is obvious that the man believed it did; and that is very disturbing. Why does this young man use the word Black as a metaphor for speed? The fact of the matter is that he truly believes that the metaphor is acceptable. Let us examine the possibilities. One possibility is that he has done numerous scientific studies on the subject. Perhaps he timed the foot speed of all African- Americans and all European- Americans and data proved that African-Americans were indeed faster. Or perhaps he has witnessed his African-American teammates beat all European-Americans in the forty-yard dash. This scenario seems to be the most plausible of the two. However, the young man's conclusions are taken out of context, his sample is too narrow. The young man does not realize that he is looking at the top end of an average. Of course the African- Americans on the team are fast, that's why they are on the team. If, as in the first scenario, the young man sampled all African- Americans and all European Americans, then his sample would be broad enough. However he simply assumes that African Americans are fast because they are African-American. It is physiologically imp-, ,h le for one group of the human ,p< ies to be markedly faster, smarter, quicker learners, higher jumpers, better students than another. Such beliefs are taken out of context, and we must all remember that we are all the same: human. Carlson is an LSA junior. Unsafe sex causes HIV To the Daily: In a recent letter to the Daily, Michael Martz said, in order to prevent the spread of AIDS, "don't commit the act of homosexuality." For Martz and everyone else's information, "the act of homosexuality" is the act of members of the same sex engaging in sexual activity. There are many forms of this "act" and not all of them are dangerous. It is possible to "commit the act of homosexuality" on a nightly basis without being at any risk for contracting HIV. Furthermore, lesbians are homosexuals, too, and they have little or no chance of contracting HIV if they are safe. HIV is contracted during unsafe sex, be it homosexual or heterosexual. "The act of homosexuality" doesn't cause AIDS. "The act of stupidity," for not practicing safe sex, does cause AIDS. Please understand this. ERIC MILLEGAN Music junior Brokow and Couric attack youth culture To the Daily: I'm writing in response to your editorial "Easy Target" (12/9/93). As an African American student I, like others of my race, have many times felt that the Daily has been very apathetic dealing with minority issues. This article showed that you do indeed care about the news media's unfair portrayals of Black culture and youth culture in general. You hit the nail on the head when you showed how Brokow and Couric are attacking youth culture. Whoever wrote this editorial deserves our utmost praise. DEROHN MITCHELL LSA sophomore Don't condemn those who try to help To the Daily: Several letters have been written condemning the societal mentality which blames the victim of rape rather than her attacker. Inevitably, the writers of letter and editorial alike infer this "societal mentality" from the remarks made by a local law enforcement official in response to the recent rape in the South Quad. Saying that the rape might have been prevented had the victim been with someone is scarcely a defense of the rapist and a gloating over the plight of the victim that it has been made out to be. And yet, this twisted reasoning is displayed repeatedly in the recent letters to the editor. Wake up and see reality! Of course it is sad that any woman would be attacked anywhere - just as it is sad that any car would be stolen, or that a teenager would be killed for his tennis shoes. For the police to warn the populace to lock up their homestand cars, not to wear flashy jewelry or expensive clothes in a bad neighborhood is not a condemnation of the victim. The real reflection on "societal mentality" isn't the blatant distortion of reality by a vocal few. Instead, it is that we allow these ridiculous assertions to go - for the most part - unchallenged and uncorrected. JOHN SCHAUBLE Engineering sophomore Lay off the white males To the Daily: Mr. Bowen decries the racism that makes equal opportuinty and affirmative action "necessary" in his column ("Affermative Action Remains Necessary" 12/8/93). He whines about the "centuries" of oppression that blacks suffered at the hands of the evil white man, and goes on to point out that these monsters have maltreated everyone from women to Latinos to the American Indian. For Mr. Bowen, justice consists in oppressing the white male -let the white male be enslaved for centuries; let him be raped by women; let him be killedby Indian weapons and diseases. Only then will the white male have a chance at understanding racism. How virtuous of Mr. Bowen. I'm impressed that he as been able to nobly refrain from all tinges of racism in the wake of the brutal atrocities that are still being perpetrated on the rest of the world by the white male. I wonder why he fails to suggest the obvious solution to the problem -a complete extermination of the miserable brood. Only then will the world be able to exist in harmony; only then will racism be dead. Until that joyous day of deliverance however, allow me to applaud Mr. Bowen for having the courage to exemplify the very racism that he so santimoniusly condems. It is rare, indeed, for anyone to tightly embrace absurdity just to make a point. JOHN SCHAUBLE Engineering sophomore 0 PSU alumni group discriminates The Penn State Alumni Associa- tion remembered to put the Nittany Lion Shrine on credit cards it spon- sors, but it did not think to offer joint memberships to graduates involved in same-sex relationships. That oversight angered alumnus Christopher P. Hannegan when he saw that the application specified joint membership in association as "a hus- legally married husbands and wives excludes people involved in same- sex relationships. The association must eliminate words that imply that only heterosexual alumni are wel- come. A group that proudly takes advan- tage of its alma mater's name, logo and prestige must follow the same nondiscriminatory policy Penn State down by a phrase. Part of the problem is the association's lack of awareness of an issue that has been kept in the dark. John Black, associate executive di- rector of the association, said he had not heard a single complaint before Hannegan's letter about the clause and does not personally see a problem with the current status.