Minorities and College
By Modestah
@Modestah (11179)
United States
April 21, 2009 2:49am CST
What do you think of this?
My child's college professor teaches that a minority is any group that is treated differently. eh? She continues that women are a minority (even though there are more of them) because they are treated differently.
Differently than what? If women are treated differently from men and that treating them differently constitutes calling them a minority - wouldn't the opposite also have to be true? in other words, using this "logic" wouldn't men have to be considered a minority because they are (therefore) treated differently than women?
I think this is a very lame definition and completely false. Minority has to do with percentages ONLY! I can't believe the amount of money we all have to put forth to pay for teachers that are ignorant of their subject.
4 responses
@zeloguy (4911)
• United States
23 Apr 09
I minority is defined as:
1. a group of people who differ racially or politically from a larger group of which it is a part
2. being or relating to the smaller in number of two parts; "when the vote was taken they were in the minority"; "he held a minority position"
Now... neither women nor men nor blacks nor whites can honestly be considered a minority; or can they.
Let's say that I went to Georgetown University.
As a male WASP would I not be in the minority since the school is (I am guessing here) over 90% black? A boy going to a former all-girls school would be in the minority if he is one of the only ones.
We use this word minority too lightly to excercise rights (or perceived rights) that some people should have over other people because of the same reasons we are supposed to be all equal in the US (race, religion, political standing, gender...).
I found out that indeed as a white man I could join the NAACP and when I was younger I almost did... why? because I could.
We have a black man (1/2 black) that has made it all the way to the White House and people on the highest of courts (Supreme Court) that are black (Clarence Thomas) and we have people in the Senate and in the House who are black.
That means... right now... we have blacks in all three branches of American government at their highest levels (Legislative, Executive, Judicial). So should there be special treatment for blacks over whites. I don't think so. Everyone is equal to everyone else. Now if you are talking about Native Americans or some other very small group of people than MAYBE... but in my opinion not women and not men.
With women you get into the whole issue of equal pay, etc... which is left for another post.
Great post!
Thanks
Zelo
Zelo
@Modestah (11179)
• United States
23 Apr 09
thanks for the great response, Zelo.
Just today I was filling out an application that stated "we are an equal opportunity employer" then directly beneath that statement were the following questions
Age
Ethnicity
Gender
We strive for diversity in the workplace.
----
so, are they really an equal opportunity employer? if they are not considering the applicant due to their answers on any of the above - I would say not!
perhaps they want balanced/equal statistics in their work force, but that is not the same as equal opportunity for applicants... at least not in my brain.
@zeloguy (4911)
• United States
23 Apr 09
I actually own a web site of names and their meanings (have done so since 1996) and that is one of the things I talk about is ethnic names and unisex names and how they can affect you in the workforce. The trend towards naming girls a boys name started in the '60s but today you see it a LOT because parents believe it will give their little girl a fighting chance in the workplace.
Hopefully in the future we won't have this type of problem.
One of the things that always has baffled me (and I have yet to ask) is instead of asking ethnicity it now asks are you Spanish or of Spanish or origin (Y/N) and that is it...
What's that all about?
Thanks
Zelo
Zelo 
@jillhill (37354)
• United States
21 Apr 09
I have a son and daughter in college....well my daughter has had some problems with one of her professors.....she is very well versed and a profectionist....she turned in a paper and he told her to be more careful etc about her work....the email he sent back to her was riddled with typos and grammer mistakes....so her being the consumer wrote back to him about his mistakes (to remind her that she is paying his wages along with the other students) and he sent her another email riddled with mistakes and all of his titles like assistant dean....do as I say and not as I do....not when college costs that much!
@Modestah (11179)
• United States
22 Apr 09
isn't that disappointing? last term he had a math problem that he just could not work out - so he asked the professor and she said she could not do it either, and that he would just have to keep at it till he got it.... so instead of moving on he focused on that one problem for hours and hours, making himself ill and never did figure it out.... how can the professor expect the student to know and do a problem that she herself is incapable of... maybe there was no solution, maybe it was an err -
@neerajpandey_13 (1765)
• India
21 Apr 09
Overall we should respect for equlity . This type of minority issue always give inequalitues in college life. Apart from that this reservation system is very bad in itself.
