Many Hoyas were confused and offended to find students passing out fliers promoting “White Student’s Union DC” on Wednesday, reports the Georgetown Voice. Some students took to Twitter to blast angry tweets regarding the event.
As it turns out, the fliers were part of two American University students’ sociology project.
Below is the text from the flier:
We are the White Student’s Union, DC—a new group dedicated to listening, thinking and acting.
We believe that students of caucasian and white racial and European ethnic backgrounds have opinions like everyone else, and that we are often grouped together as a common, minority-hating people. We believe that we can often be judged as “the oppressors” based on the history of our race, and not on our personal thoughts.
We want to know how white students think they are perceived, how other students perceive white students, and what both groups can do to advance our world together, not apart. We are out to celebrate the uniqueness that each culture brings, and the similarities that we can all share.
We are not a hateful, “whites-only” social clique. We are an open, accepting, non-racist groups that wants to voice our own concerns—which are no less valid than those of any other racial or ethnic group—in an equal environment.
Drop us a line at thewsudc@gmail.com. We’re hoping to get this group up and running on several DC campuses soon.
what’s wrong with a white student union? Blacks have a student union, latinos have a student union. Why can’t whites?
having a union on campus implies that white students are disadvantaged for some reason. people of color form unions on campus because due to the history of the US and the color of their skin, they are disadvantaged and may need the support of others as well as the strength of an organization. this isn’t to say that whites don’t have their share of issues on college campuses, but it is significantly less so than minority groups.
and you know whites have less issues on college campus’s because how?
Had a white person said blacks have less issues than they say – your response would be what?
White students are disadvantaged to even get on the campus – accepted in the school via Affirmative Action that gives advantages for one race over another. The same written institutional racism policy is seen in Grad school and Govt. hiring practices.
There is no debate about that.
While I understand that the union implies being disadvantaged, I think that just goes to show that all the Georgetown students and, realistically, most of the GW students will read is the title saying “White Students Union”. The explanation they included of the organization has no reference to being disadvantaged or oppressed, instead it plainly describes itself as an organization intended to end the view of being oppressors. Real or not, they clearly put thought into how to word this and I think that it poses no racial harm or discontent, save for our preconceived biases against “so and so” Student Union.
I have mixed feelings about this. I think they went about things in the wrong way.
End the view of bring oppressors huh? So no more white guilt?
I have no white guilt, I in no way had anything to do with the way my white ancestors treated anyone. So why the heck should it effect anything that happens today. But I’m going to fight for as much as I can get. I don’t think it should be legal for any group to have any kind of limitations related to race. But the cards have been played and I’m going to do everything i can do to get scholarship money. If students are getting money for being black or mexican or hispanic, I’m going to do everything I can to get money for being white.
Really Chris? Why do white students need a special student union? Aren’t most student organizations already, in effect, the white student union? Particularly because this organization (yes, I realize it was a project) states that it accepts students of all races.
Written policies of institutionalized racism are evident in all walks of life. From college and grad school admission, to job hiring in state local and federal government, preferential treatment is given to one or more races all over whites.
Having a union for white students to correct this anti white treatment within Schools and government, just makes sense. Is this not what MLK did regarding the treatment of blacks in higher educational and employment opportunities?
If sociology is just the science of pissing of Georgetown, can I be a sociology major?
I will be using this flyer as part of my Critical Thinking essay. I do not see that the flyer is offensive. And, by the way, I am not only white.