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Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

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Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#11

Post by meri_dian »

zenkat wrote: post #8

Why is this article considered suitable for Hacker News? It's political fodder, not sci/tech. In any case, there appears to be many overheated claims around this event, with precious little context. This was a voluntary event, where both minority and white students were allowed to go off-campus for discussions around "identity politics"; https://evergreen.edu/multicultural/day-of-absence-day-of-pr...

>"Day of Absence is a day for community building around identity groups."

It sounds more like an event encouraging and celebrating tribalism.

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#12

Post by BCM43 »

gaius wrote: post #6

Evergreen is $25k/year, so while not quite as egregious as Oberlin at $65k/year, it's enough that anyone enrolled there is highly privileged themselves. Particularly those without a direct route to monetise their degree such as those taking professional subjects.

You know that loans and scholarships exist, right?

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#13

Post by cupscale »

meri_dian wrote: post #2

Wow, this is really reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution. These retaliatory attitudes towards 'white' people are hostile and racist and do not work towards building an inclusive society. Edit: Why was this flagged?

I guess. As someone who grew up near Evergreen (and knew a few classmates who attended), Evergreen's always kinda been this way. At least for the last 20+ years.

I (and many others I grew up with) think of Evergreen in the same way I think of avant garde fashion: It's sometimes a precursor of trends to come, but those trends are heavily watered-down and altered versions of the original.

I don't worry about a cultural revolution stemming from Evergreen any more than I worry about a nazi uprising stemming from 4chan.

EDIT: That is to say, both can be influential in their own way but in both cases their particular viewpoints get really watered-down by the time it becomes "mainstream" in any way.

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#14

Post by factsaresacred »

> Media professor Naima Lowe...said that “white supremacy is literally ingrained in everything.” In other words, merely defending oneself against the accusation of “white supremacy” is evidence of guilt.

Hmm, now what kind of professor uses such an utterly insane attempt at reasoning?

https://thebadger14.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/lowe.jpg

Ah.

Honestly, reality is becoming a parody. Why are people with apparent personality disorders (not to mention, intelligence deficits) allowed to wield such influence?

Somebody mentioned the Cultural Revolution. Go read Philip Pan's excellent 'Out of Mao's Shadow'. The pages on struggle sessions read exactly like the tales coming out of Evergreen. An excerpt:

> But Mao rewrote history and added a new section setting limits on what could be criticized....The lively campus debates over ideas became denunciation meetings, and at times they got physical, with students shoved to the ground and forced to bow their heads....One by one, those who had voiced “Rightist” opinions were identified and summoned to self-criticism meetings, where they were told to confess their crimes, implicate colleagues, and renounce friends.

This nonsense has to end.

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#15

Post by wallace_f »

quotemstr wrote: post #3

Why is Evergreen still getting a single cent of public money? This attitude doesn't educate people or serve any public interest.

Academia. 'Anti Whiteness is pro humanity,' according to a professor teaching a course "The Problem with Whiteness," who UW Madison defends[0].

"In this class, we will ask what an ethical white identity entails, what it means to be #woke, and consider the journal Race Traitor's motto, 'treason to whiteness is loyalty to humanity"

Any professor teaching anti-(any other race'ness') would be instantly a pariah and unable to keep a job.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/23/health/college-course-white-co...

I have a question. When I grew up I heard 'colorblindness' was a good thing. What happened to that? It appears we are going in the opposite direction.

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#16

Post by quuquuquu »

meri_dian wrote: post #2

Wow, this is really reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution. These retaliatory attitudes towards 'white' people are hostile and racist and do not work towards building an inclusive society. Edit: Why was this flagged?

It was flagged because x% of users on this site refuse to have difficult and nuanced conversations about racism and censorship.

They ruin it for the rest of us.

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#17

Post by gaius »

BCM43 wrote: post #12
gaius wrote: post #6

Evergreen is $25k/year, so while not quite as egregious as Oberlin at $65k/year, it's enough that anyone enrolled there is highly privileged themselves. Particularly those without a direct route to monetise their degree such as those taking professional subjects.

You know that loans and scholarships exist, right?

Loans still have to be repaid no? Money is money.

In the case of scholarships, that's a golden opportunity that is being squandered - an even greater exercise of privilege.

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#18

Post by zenkat »

meri_dian wrote: post #11
zenkat wrote: post #8

Why is this article considered suitable for Hacker News? It's political fodder, not sci/tech. In any case, there appears to be many overheated claims around this event, with precious little context. This was a voluntary event, where both minority and white students were allowed to go off-campus for discussions around "identity politics"; https://evergreen.edu/multicultural/day-of-absence-day-of-pr...

>"Day of Absence is a day for community building around identity groups." It sounds more like an event encouraging and celebrating tribalism.

That's a valid critique of identity politics. The original article is not.

And again, I didn't think HN was a forum for debating these sorts of political / cultural issues in the first place. What does this have to do with science, technology, or startups?

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#19

Post by Blackthorn »

wallace_f wrote: post #15
quotemstr wrote: post #3

Why is Evergreen still getting a single cent of public money? This attitude doesn't educate people or serve any public interest.

Academia. 'Anti Whiteness is pro humanity,' according to a professor teaching a course "The Problem with Whiteness," who UW Madison defends[0]. "In this class, we will ask what an ethical white identity entails, what it means to be #woke, and consider the journal Race Traitor's motto, 'treason to whiteness is loyalty to humanity" Any professor teaching anti-(any other race'ness') would be instantly a pariah and unabl…

> Any professor teaching anti-(any other race'ness') would be instantly a pariah and unable to keep a job.

Whiteness isn't really a race, so that's not the same thing. In America, it's been a social construct whose members have shifted over the years.

> I have a question. When I grew up I heard 'colorblindness' was a good thing. What happened to that? It appears we are going in the opposite direction.

People started to realize that it ignores the lived experience of black people.

Re: Inside the Madness at Evergreen State

#20

Post by vixen99 »

quuquuquu wrote: post #16
meri_dian wrote: post #2

Wow, this is really reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution. These retaliatory attitudes towards 'white' people are hostile and racist and do not work towards building an inclusive society. Edit: Why was this flagged?

It was flagged because x% of users on this site refuse to have difficult and nuanced conversations about racism and censorship. They ruin it for the rest of us.

What a shame given that HN-ers are perfectly capable of seeing the holes in lousy arguments or questioning dodgy 'facts' if they are.
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