The University of California Board of Regents got together for two hours on Wednesday to discuss racial and homophobic incidents that have occurred on their campuses recently. Two of the incidents involved the use of a racial epithet on a student television show at UC San Diego and swastikas painted and carved on multiple locations at UC Davis. An anti-gay slogan was spray painted on the UC Davis gay and lesbian center, and some UC San Diego students held a "Compton Cookout," featuring insulting images of African Americans.
The group decided to issue an apology to the incidents.
"It is the absence of inclusion that frees hatred, that frees bigotry, that allows it to go unchallenged. That's our biggest problem," regent Eddie Island said.
Mark Yudof, president of the University of California system, acknowledged the "Compton Cookout" incident and even mentioned the low African American enrollment on campus. He then argued that he wants all UC campuses to adopt an admissions process that he considers to be "holistic" in the way students are reviewed. The process would include evaluating test scores and high school grades in the context of life experience.
"I want a system that is less mechanical and takes a serious look at a range of talents and skills and history, and takes into account poverty," Yudof said.
UC San Diego, where the Compton Cookout took place allows for holistic review. But Yudof stated that he would like to use the same system at all nine of the UC undergraduate campuses. What is most interesting, however, is that Yudof should remember that talk is cheap and apologies only matter when you put your money where your mouth is. The truth is that if you do an analysis of the number of African American professors on most of the campuses in the UC system, you are probably going to be extremely disappointed. But I imagine that while the universities swear up and down that they can't find qualified black professors (although there are thousands out there), they have no problem going to South Central Los Angeles to find the next great black basketball phenom.
Most of us around the country are aware of the race problem at University of California colleges and universities. Since Ward Connerly was able to get Proposition 209 passed in the state, many of the state's universities are suffering an embarrassing litany of diversity issues that have turned the state into a prototype of racial exclusion. An environment that lacks diversity in the student and faculty body ultimately serves as an incubator for racial ignorance. When students make bad decisions, it is up to us as faculty to question what it is that we are teaching them.
Dr. Yudof and his colleagues would be well-advised to understand that we live in a world in which black and brown people are a significant and relevant piece of the global experience. By denying their students the opportunity to learn from faculty who come from under-represented minority groups, they are stealing their chance to understand America. By refusing to admit black and brown students, they are allowing UC students to learn about us by watching BET and NBA games. Therefore, the white students choosing to hold a "Compton Cookout" is a reflection of their most accurate and appropriate representation of people of color.
I spoke last month at Stanford University, only to find myself disturbed by the deflated spirits of many of the African American students. While Stanford is not part of the UC system, there was a general perception that diversity was no longer valued in California, and that the black and brown academic holocaust is being ignored. During this holocaust, student futures are being destroyed by those determined to raise the height of gates one is required to jump in order to obtain admission to their institutions. Had I grown up in that state, I never would have gone to college, and that would have ruined my life.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and the author of the new book, "Black American Money." To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email.
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