“To represent the needs and interests of the nonCGS, undergraduate student body to the University administration, faculty, and other members of the University community as well as outside organizations at the federal, state, and local levels.”  This is the first function of the Student Government Board, or so their Constitution claims.  A few weeks ago, the SGB, by a vote of 5-4, passed Resolution 0014 in support of the Civil Rights March to the Supreme Court to offer the University of Pittsburgh’s support of the University of Michigan’s affirmative action policy.  First of all, the SGB is in no position to make such a statement on behalf of all University of Pittsburgh students.  As can be illustrated by the board’s vote count, this Resolution did not at all represent the majority opinion here at the University of Pittsburgh; it may not have even represented the opinion of half of the students here; but once again, as is usually the case, whoever is the loudest gets their way.  President Washo had an obligation to not pass this resolution.  This resolution sends forth a strong statement about the values and interests of the student body.  When there is such a strong opposition to the resolution, the President has an obligation to vote against it.  This gives the opportunity to draft a new resolution, more agreeable to everyone.  This did not happen, however.  Instead of fulfilling the primary function of the Board’s existence, all that was accomplished was appeasing the loud minority, and effectively excluding a very large number of University students from the very government that is supposed to be representing them.

    As you can tell, I was against Resolution 0014, and you may also have guessed I am a conservative, and I am sure you have also guessed I am white.  But what the Board fails to see is none of that matters.  I am an American.  I was born and raised here in the United States.  I do not consider myself a German American, a European American, or a white American.  I am an American; period, end of story.  Most of the students of other races here at the University were also born and raised here in the United States.  For some reason, though, they feel that they are not Americans, but they are African Americans, or Asian Americans, or Indian Americans, or Hispanic Americans, or one of many other classifications that have been established.  They were not born or raised in the country or region of their ethnic origin; and many of them have never even visited any of those places, and yet, these classifications still have to be made.  I fail to see why any distinctions are necessary.  Brown v. Board of Education was decided in 1954.  There has been no legal segregation in almost 50 years.  There has been no slavery for over 130 years.  Why are today’s white students paying the price for mistakes made so long ago?  Affirmative Action, and more specifically giving minority students advantages in University admissions directly and solely as a result of their race, is unfair and completely counterproductive for achieving their goals.  Affirmative Action was established, or at least it is said to be established, to “level the playing field” for minority students.  It would seem as though I have been mistaken, but I always thought that leveling the playing field meant making things equal for everyone.  All that Affirmative Action accomplishes is giving minorities an undeserved boost at the expense of white students.  How is this equal?  Let’s say that I had the same neighbors all through my youth, and they happened to be black.  Suppose they had a son my age and we went to the same school, went to the same church, hung out at all the same places, had a lot of the same friends; had almost identical backgrounds.  The only difference we have is where our ancestors from generations and generations ago immigrated to the United States from.  Under the Affirmative Action program, my neighbor would be a more valuable addition to the University than me, only because of from where his ancestors immigrated.  This remains true even if I achieved a 4.0 QPA and/or a 1600 on the SAT.  That makes absolutely no sense at all.  Affirmative Action does not achieve equality.  All Affirmative Action accomplishes is getting a more colorful campus.  Do not misinterpret what I’m saying, however.  I am totally in favor of diversity.  I believe it should happen naturally though.  These mechanisms in place that try to force diversity to happen will never succeed in creating equality.  On the contrary, all they create is even more racism.

     Racism is defined as “the belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others.”  All too often it is thought and expressed that racism only occurs when it involves whites getting advantages over blacks and other minorities.  When it is the other way around, however, it is never considered racism, but equality.  When will we be able to stop paying the price for mistakes made decades, even centuries, ago?  If that were always the case, the United States should have never resumed relations with England.  You have never seen any of our Presidents on the TV giving speeches about how we deserve reparations from England for how much they oppressed the people of the colonies.  I don’t know any Americans that have grudges against the English for taxation without representation or forcing the quartering of troops without consent.  That would be ludicrous.  If we use the correct definition of racism, we can see that Affirmative Action fits that definition flawlessly.

 Resolution 0016 was also proposed alongside Resolution 0014.  This Resolution supported the removal of all checkboxes on the University application that indicated race and gender.  A certain chair of the Multicultural Committee that shall remain nameless called it “the most racist document she has ever seen.”  How in the world is that a racist document?  By removing all indication of race or gender on University applications, there will finally be a level playing field.  On the same token, by demanding that these checkboxes stay on, the parties that hold that feeling are admitting that they want their race to make a difference in how their application is judged.  Resolution 0016 is not racist.  Resolution 0016 does not claim that certain races are superior to other races.  Resolution 0016 does not attempt to put any race at an advantage over any other races.  All Resolution 0016 would accomplish is a level playing field.  There were students that were offended by a comment made about “freebies” resulting from Affirmative Action.  Seriously though, what else could these results be called?  Freebies are beneficial outcomes gained through no effort on your part.  No one has a part in determining their race.  By expecting to get beneficial treatment because of something you had no part in creating, you are asking for a freebie.  There is no other way to describe it.

 In summation, I am embarrassed and ashamed right now to be represented by the current Student Government Board.  I also feel that Board Member Hutelmyer should resign from Student Government Board.  I feel this way not because I disagree with how he is performing in his position, but because if I were in his position, I would be embarrassed to be associated with such an organization.  The job of the SGB is to represent the students of the University.  They are not there to appease organizations that have found something they don’t like and want to create noise about.  Furthermore, they are not there to make strong statements on behalf of the University students that they clearly are in no position to make.  I think it is time for people to learn the true meaning behind the word equality and the idea of a “level playing field.”  Clearly, these people still have a great deal to learn.