Busting the Baylor Bubble -or- An Independant Study in Ignorance
I am now fully convinced that Baylor University has a problem. When I moved to Waco and Baylor U from San Antonio the one aspect that shocked me most (and I've been saying this since my freshman year) was the mass amounts of racial tension. I'm from the city of fiestas, margaritas, and good food... I never experienced this type of tension! Maybe we were always too tired, had too many margaritas, or too busy eating at places like Henry's, Jacala's, and Mexican Manhattan.
Baylor's problem, in my opinion, is this: Ignorant individuals in an environment that unintentionally breeds ingnorance.
As you might have seen in the news, a Baylor student went to a "thug" themed party hosted by one of our campuses greek orginizations, and used bronzer to darken her skin to appear black... because, apparently, her idea of "thug" meant "black." This is horrible. This is the perfect example of the ignorant perpetuation of stereotypes that occur everyday around Baylor. This happens, unfortunately, when your target student body is financially elite caucasians who have managed to stay relatively seperate from other cultures and lifestyles.
I think if you target this audience, part of the responsible education you should give them would address the stereotypes and presuppositions they are bringing with them, that do not work in "the real world."
Baylor has only been a racially integrated institution since 1964... that's only a little over 40 years ago. We can't assume that all of the issues that go along with stereotypes and cultural differences are solved in so short a time. So something needs to happen. At a campus wide forum for discussion over this issue yesterday that I attended (there was an impressive 400 people there, which is a good thing), conversation took place among students and while many good, right things were said, there were some things said by people that convince me further that this student body is largely ignorant of such issues.
What is Baylor doing to ammend this ongoing problem? Well, they're creating forums like the one yesterday, which is a good start... they offer a course on multicultural studies... okay. The problem is this: the majority of Baylor students can go through their academic experience here without ever having their cultural beliefs and stereotypes addressed and corrected. This is not a good "Christian" education.
At the meeting yesterday, I suggested that if Baylor can justify requiring chapels and Christian Scriptures and Heritage courses as a part of accomplishing our uniquely Christian mission, why can't it require a course on Social and Cultural Issues? I think this needs to happen. I think this would be effective. I think you have to force people to take part in these conversations or they will go on in ignorance.
If Baylor can make "Campus Diversity" and initiative of the 2012 Vision, we can certainly make more intentional strides to create dialouge and education concerning issues of cultural ignorance.
The nature of the majority of the student body at Baylor University is such that most of them have not had an opportunity to go outside of their culture and form relationships where myths can be busted. Baylor University needs to take on more responsibility in this aspect of educating its students... and it needs to happen NOW and drastically.
posted by Singleton @ 11:33 AM
12 comments
12 Comments:
i was sitting in my ethics class today, and the person next to me made this comment about homeless people: "i mean when i a homeless person, i think to myself: i work hard to earn money; why doesn't this person just go get a job." what ignorance! do you think the homeless person has not thought of that. ignorance is a huge issue among upper-middle class students. i am a part of this group and admit that i too am ignorant. but i have done somethings and hope to do more that rids of this ignornance.
S-Diddy:
This also ties in beautifully with your previous post regarding language (did you plan that?). Your issue is one certainly of culture and language, although isn't it funny how different cultures are kind of blended unconsciously into our mixture via food, music, words, even our lives, it's the American way e.g. "carne asada", "Halle Barry" (whom some of us refer to as "mulatto" - her mom's white), "thug", Jewish terms like "yiddish", "oy vey", even Arabic like "jihad".
But your post, and Harris' comment, also alludes to the less comfortable subject of "class", I think what mostly applies to Baylor (I'm ducking), and the increasing divide btw rich and poor.
This was deep, Singular. In the words of Eddie Murphy: "Deep, deep, deep, deep, deep, undercover". Si Se Puede - Por la Causa!
Mandatory Pre-Requisite for every Bay. student: Poverty Simulation Weekend through Mission Waco. Couldn't hurt.
Hmm. I don't know that it's a university's responsibility to "force" people out of their cultural ignorance. It seems like if students are there driven to learn and expand their horizons or what have you, the proverbial cultural ignorance bubble you described would, indeed, burst. I doubt very much that any university could really get people to understand the underlying tensions unless the students themselves engage the dialogue.
One other point: it's not just Baylor. I think a lot of the perspective you're seeing has to do with southern culture in general (even though Texas isn't technically the South) and Waco's history of racial tension in particular. The Waco Race Relations Coalition might be a good resource for information on that issue. I'd definitely agree that Waco has a problem with racial tension. A lot of minorities in Waco feel they are marginalized and ignored - and maybe they are.
Does Baylor have online forums for discussion? Maybe you should start a racial and cultural awareness forum. Couldn't hurt.
Damn my long comments.
I'd agree with Katy here, and not just because we're peas.
A university isn't a substitute parent.
It should, in my opinion, by all means provide opportunities for students to explore horizons that stretch beyond their upbringing and limited world view.
But anything the university requires students to experience, educationally, should be delivered by those who are hopefully thoughtful enough to show how what they're teaching relates to issues of multicultural co-existence.
These are adults attending institutions of higher education, not children on long leashes under the protection of approved guardians, whether parents or friends or detached observers believe it, and these adults need to take responsibility for their own lives and life lessons.
"These are adults attending institutions of higher education, not children on long leashes..."
Of course I think all my friends at Baylor are but...all of 'em?
[Cue: sound of Lexus/'06 SUV tires screeching down 8th street.....]
I agree Robert... I think my point is that these ARE children on long leashes. They need to be forcefully educated on other cultures because it does NOT happen otherwise.
Katy- I try to participate actively and facilitate these conversations (i.e. attendance and participation in "Dialogue of Differences" yesterday), I've tried for four years. I have many stories to tell. I think the South, the Nation, this University, the church, and the educational system need to be MORE intentional about addressing these issues.
I think it is a University's responsiblity when that University claims a specific, Christian identity and is an elite, private University with big-time diversity issues and racial tension that has only been integrated for 40 years.
Too many Baylor students stay ignorant and perpetuate ignorance. As a "learning community" with a "Christian worldview" how do you address this?
So I'm all about education and discussion groups etc... however who attends these things? People like Matt, who are already pretty well aware of cultural diversity. From a group psychology perspective, the best way to burst these peoples' bubbles is to make them actually get to know someone from a different culture, ehtnicity, race etc. How do you do that? Well, its not through having segregated sororities and fraternities. To throw in a technical term, you use superordinate goals; basically you have them work on something together that they both care about. School project, sports teams, pretty much any extracurricular activity will do. In sum, while I am a big supporter of education and getting at unconscious stereotypes and ignorance; however, sometimes the best way to change behavior is ...to change the behavior. I hope that last part made sense. What I mean is, beliefs usually change after experiences - (to use a church term, belonging precedes believing).
Valerie - right on! - I love you. Say it my sistah!
or valerie, ontology precedes epistemology. carney and many of us have been discussing this.
Valerie- that is awesome. I totally agree and can say that that has been my experience and journey in the erasure cultural ignorance. I wish this happened more at Baylor (and not just at one-time events). It doesn't.
How do I address it? I think to myself, "Welp, those kids are going to grow up really fast when they step into the real world." I guess I just don't feel that a university should have to parent the kids. It's the parents' responsibility to adequately prepare kids for real life.
Just some thoughts. I have a lot of them. I like debater sorts who like to argue back. Nice.
I understand what you're saying I think. The reason I place this effort at the University level is for, let's say, three reasons:
1) I think College is where the "real world" begins. (Or at least it has for me.)
2) My fear is that someone can go through their time at Baylor and never interact with other cultures in a meaningful way, only to graduate and return to a white-flight neighborhood, commmunity, and job where they never have to think about it again.
3) I don't think a university should have to instill those values either... but somebody isn't doing there job, and I don't know of a better environment to educate the ignorance out of people than a university.
Post a Comment
<< Home