My intention behind saying we are still an “old Southern school” was not to refer to the political milieu within or surrounding the Gainesville area.
Rather, my intention was to refer to the history of our university with the cultural segregation that remains within groups on campus.
In 1958, UF integrated with no protest, but by the fall of 1970, when Stephen C. O’Connell was the president of the university, there were only 343 black students in the entire Student Body at the university.
In April 1971, a sit-in at the president’s office resulted in the arrest of 66 students. In what was known as the “Black Thursday” protest, O’Connell refused to grant amnesty to the demonstrators in question, and one-third of black students left the university.
Several black faculty members resigned after the incident.
In the 1970s, it was known that students of color could not walk on certain places on campus without being shunned away, most notably on Turlington Plaza.
Keeping this history in mind, I would argue thecultural milieu on campus is still segregated because people find comfort in being a community of individuals they are alike in culture.
There is nothing wrong with a person identifying themselves within a community.
But when cultural groups are not willing to interact with one another because of arbitrary cultural differences in order to mobilize for a cause, problems arise.
As the president of the Pi chapter of Sigma Beta Rho Fraternity Inc., it is my duty to my organization to raise awareness and respect for all cultures, as many individuals share a birthplace different from that of their ancestors.
In my experience within the Greek community, which I view as a microcosm of cultural life on campus, it can be clearly discerned that the Interfraternity Council and the Panhellenic Council reflect predominately white social organizations, whereas the National Pan-Hellenic Council and the Multicultural Greek Council reflect the minority social organizations.
The interaction between these councils reflect a great deal of segregation in their interactions with one another whether it’s direct or indirect.
Maybe it’s wrong for me to base my views upon the interactions I see within the large Greek community we have here on campus, but I stand by my opinion that our campus community here is more culturally segregated than the environments you might see if you were to walk onto any of the thousands of other college campuses around the country.
I agree with Nate Rushing: You cannot force the idea of cultural acceptance or awareness upon people.
That’s not what I am advocating.
I’m arguing cultural divisions on campus are counterproductive for people to act meaningfully with each other.
I also agree with Rushing that people will never see one another as equals.
But there is no harm in facilitating dialogue about current issues of conflict.
Rushing’s points about Gainesville and UF’s policies are all great, but they are moot.
Just because freshmen are required to read a book on illegal immigration and Gainesville has an openly gay mayor doesn’t automatically make us a campus without serious cultural division and problems.
There is no indication of “a bloated sense of political correctness” within the arguments because the arguments I’m making are apolitical and more directly to the state of cultural organizations on campus.
Rushing “never wants to see a world in which no differences are drawn between individuals,” but he must understand arbitrary assumptions and unfair discrimination toward Tyler Clementi’s sexuality led to his suicide.
Awareness that discrimination is still present on our campus is absolutely critical for us to move on as a campus community.
Nirav Patel is a UF student and the president of the Pi chapter of Sigma Beta Rho Fraternity Inc.
