Campus forum raises race issues

Discrimination by University Public Safety, a lack of diversity among eating club members and unsupportive faculty were among the issues raised at a forum titled "Does Race Matter at Princeton?" held Monday night in the Frist Campus Center multi-purpose room.

The forum, hosted by the Princeton chapter of the National Council of Negro Women and attended by about 120 students, featured a video created by Tschepo Masango '03 and a discussion panel of 10 students.

Panelist Mario Moya '02, former president of the Chicano Caucus, said eating clubs are a cause of racial segregation on campus.

"My feeling is that once the clubs are gone, we will have true integration in this University," Moya said.

Marjory Herold '01, an African-American member of Charter Club, defended eating clubs, saying her active involvement makes Charter a place where she feels comfortable.

"We complain that we don't like the clubs because we don't like the DJs and the parties there," Herold said. "Are minority students expecting the clubs to call them and ask them what kind of DJ they want to listen to? I talk to the social chair and tell him what I want."

Students at the forum also raised the issue of faculty members being unsupportive of minority students.

Panelist Laura Coates '01, former president of the Princeton chapter of the NCNW, pointed to University professor Toni Morrison as an example of this problem.

"The way she acts towards her minority students and the way she acts towards her white students embodies to me what it is like to be at the Southern Gentleman's School of the North," Coates said.

Coates suggested that all faculty members should reach out to students. She added that alumni groups should stop working towards bettering the University for future students, but instead pay attention to the problems facing students currently enrolled.

Several students expressed displeasure that President Shapiro and other members of the University administration were not present at the forum.

Audience members also repeatedly raised the issue of discrimination by Public Safety officers.

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"There are two faces of Public Safety. There are the faces during the day, and then there are the faces at night, which happen to be black. And I happen to get along very well with black public safety," said Justin Anderson '02.

Students also expressed frustration with the emphasis administrators put on being part of a minority group.

"As a minority affairs adviser, I get the feeling that you are constantly reminded when you come to campus that you are a minority," panelist Arun Wiita '02 said.

Panelist Jimmy Yang '01, suggested elitism makes race an issue at the University.

"I think the question is, how do you resolve these words like unity, integration and community at an elitist institution such as Princeton?" Yang said.

Coates disagreed with Yang's opinion, suggesting elitism attracted her to Princeton.

"I could care less about making friends with other races," Coates said.

"The reason why I came here is not because I thought it wasn't elitist, it was because I thought it was, and because I thought I could have opportunities to go into careers that make enough money to be financially independent," she added.

"When I think of racism on campus, I think of minorities having equal access," she said. "Minorities are filtered into programs that focus solely on minorities alone."

Of the approximately 120 students in attendance, less than 10 percent were white students.

Panelist Wade Rakes '02 expressed disappointment at the turnout.

"If you look at this room, you can see that we might not be reaching the audience that we would like to," he said.

Paula Chao, director of the International Center, disagreed.

"We have so many people here from different ethnic groups that we need to understand each other as well, and then, of course, the so-called majority will begin to understand the issues."

The Princeton Chapter of the NCNW has approximately 60 members. The group was founded nationally in 1935 with the goal of bettering the lives of African-American women.