More than 150 students, faculty and staff gathered in Whig Hall yesterday for a campus-wide forum on race relations, sponsored by 17 campus groups. The program opened with speeches from faculty panelists about race relations in general. The focus then shifted to student speakers who connected those issues to the University.
The forum, titled "Why Can't We All Just Get Along?" was part of President Clinton's "One America" program. But, at this event, some student speakers said that they see more than "one Princeton."
"At Princeton, we have two camps," USG president David Ascher '99 said. One group is willing to talk about race relations, while another "much larger group" is too distracted, he said.
Segregation
Race relations are "not OK," Ascher said. He added: "Look at any of the dining halls, and witness racial segregation – not just black/white segregation, but also segregation of Asian and Asian-American students."
The eating clubs also "must actively encourage participation among minority students in Princeton's social life," Ascher said.
Other speakers during the discussion said the University has an image of being unfriendly to minorities. Ryan Sawchuk '00 said "people laugh" when he tells them the University is more diverse than his high school.
Jo Chen '00, an international student and president of the American Whig-Cliosophic Society, said friends in Singapore warned him that Princeton "was a white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant bastion."
Sitting in the audience, one African-American student said under his breath, "It is."
According to several of the students who spoke, that image has affected admissions. Ascher said the University "must reverse the trend of dropping minority enrollment." Jill Goldenziel '00, vice president of the Center for Jewish Life, said Jewish enrollment has fallen during the past five years.
Chen said the University has the second-lowest number of international students in the Ivy League. Monte White '99 said few Native Americans attend the University.
Recruiting 'broadly'
"We do our level-best to recruit as broadly" as possible, Dean of the College Nancy Weiss Malkiel said after the event. "What is difficult to control are the decisions of individual students" about whether to enroll, she said.
For most faculty members, the forum was a place to discuss their views on race relations in general. Sociology professor Howard Taylor said "just because race is a social construction does not mean it isn't of paramount importance." Dean of Religious Life Joseph Williamson said he hoped that religion could help to heal racial divisions. The audience applauded as religion professor David Carrasco explained that the distinct "color line" has been blurred.
Administrators and staff sat in the audience as well. Associate Provost Joann Mitchell estimated that 40 percent of those who attended the forum were staff and that 20 percent of the students in the crowd were white.
Marcus Neal '99 said he saw new faces in the crowd. He said attendance was helped by the large number of student organizations that were involved.
After the forum, students and staff said the event had been successful. Assistant Professor of Politics Tali Mendelberg distributed a survey that she will use to design a race relations forum next fall. Mitchell said it would be similar to yesterday's.
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