Campus inclusion

Whites and Christians need not apply

By Rohit Joy
From the October 2006 Print Edition

Chancellor Robert Birgeneau recently announced he is adding a vice chancellor of equity and inclusion to UC Berkeley’s leadership team. The new "diversity czar," according to the Daily Californian, will be charged with improving "the campus experience and representation of ethnic and religious minorities, students with disabilities, and people from the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community." The lucky one who gets the job will command a lofty paycheck ranging from $182,000 to $282,000 per year, and an annual budget of more than $4 million.

The creation of the new position is the latest in a series of backdoor efforts to undermine Proposition 209, enacted by California voters in 1996. Proposition 209 directs that "the state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting." Birgeneau claims his intent is not to recruit more minorities but to ensure that they are "fully respected for their individuality and what they represent." However, the addition of the diversity czar violates the sprit — if not the letter — of Proposition 209 because no effort will be made to "respect the individuality" of Caucasian students, even though at roughly 30 percent of the undergraduate population, whites are a minority at Cal.

The new vice chancellorship is not the only way in which the university spends taxpayer dollars on programs specifically targeted toward certain racial groups. Berkeley continues to fund special recruitment and retention centers for blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans. In addition, when applying for on-campus housing students are given the option of joining one of several race-based theme programs, such as the African American Theme Program, the Asian Pacific American Theme Program, or the Casa Magdalena Mora Theme Program.

More than simply violating Proposition 209, the university’s race-conscious programs foster division rather than unity among students. In assessing the needs of students based on race and ethnicity, these programs encourage racial and ethnic separatism. Chancellor Birgeneau’s statements that "to be part of this community, [Berkeley students, faculty, and staff] do not have to homogenize and assimilate" and that "California [universities] should play a leadership role in scholarship in multiculturalism" are especially noteworthy; they reveal his belief that people at UC Berkeley should accord their sub-national identities — whether ethnic, religious, or cultural — primacy over their national (American) identity. In the wake of the fifth anniversary of 9/11 and the ongoing immigration and assimilation debate, it is especially important that we are all united as Americans, and UC Berkeley’s leadership could better contribute by rejecting programs that only end up dividing us.

In addition to tracking the representation and experience of ethnic minorities, the vice chancellor will be responsible for doing the same for religious minorities. One can reasonably infer that by religious "minorities" the university means everyone except for Christians, in the same way that Caucasians are not classified as a racial "minority" even though there are more Asians than whites at Berkeley. Since Birgeneau hopes to improve the experience and representation of religious "minorities" by creating the new vice chancellorship, he must feel that these groups face a hostile climate relative to what Christians face.

Empirical evidence, however, demonstrates that this is not the case. Last year, for example, the university’s on-campus dining facilities recognized a host of "minority" religious holidays, including Diwali, Eid al-Fitr, and Passover. In some cases, fliers with details about each religion were distributed in each facility. No similar recognition was provided for Christian holidays; the Christmas feast was called "Winterfest," and there was no mention whatsoever of Good Friday — clear evidence that Christians face discriminatory treatment on this campus. It does not follow that Christians deserve the type of special treatment the vice chancellor of equity and inclusion has in store for other religious groups, but merely that Christianity deserves at least equal acknowledgment.

The final group that would receive preferential treatment as a result of the new post consists of those individuals practicing alternative lifestyles, including homosexuality, bisexuality, and even changing one’s gender. What is especially pernicious about this is that not only is the university using non-merit-based selection criteria to benefit one group of students over another, but the "group" in this case happens to be promoting manifestly immoral behavior. Moreover, by including homosexuals, bisexuals, and transsexuals among the beneficiaries of the program, Birgeneau sends them the message that their conduct is laudable, and — given that today’s college students are tomorrow’s leaders in society — advances the notion that one’s sexual orientation is a relevant component to public leadership.

The creation of the vice chancellor of equity and inclusion is the latest step in the university leadership’s agenda to thwart Proposition 209 by covertly implementing racial preferences in the recruitment, admission, and retention processes. Also part of the plan, but perhaps less noticed, is to suppress Christian values by specifically promoting religions other than Christianity as well as lifestyles opposed by mainstream Christianity.

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