Hate crimes and institutional racism

This week’s column is intended to be a continuation of the discussion I began in my last column. But this time I would like to tackle the problem of hate crimes and hate groups both on our campus and in America. The problems we face at our university merely reflect the problems that our country is struggling with. This year, the number of hate crimes nationwide rose to 926, a four percent increase from the year before and a staggering 54 percent higher than in 2000. The dismal truth is that while we celebrate the historic election of our first nonwhite president, racism and hate crimes are on the rise.

The presence of hate groups in America is not a new problem, but the recent upsurge in membership is most likely due to the crumbling economy, immigration policies, Obama hatred, and other recent changes in our societal fabric. Hate crimes pose a problem that has touched even Columbia University. Most of the hate crimes on campus in the past two years have been at Teachers College, and as the daughter of a TC professor emeritus, I feel extremely connected to the TC community and have been dismayed by recent events at the school.

Two weeks ago, I discussed the Core at Columbia and the importance of evolving education to reflect global perspectives. What I left out of my last column is the issue of who is in charge of creating the Core and the importance of knowing more about the people who mold education, not just here at Columbia but at all universities. Alumni who donate large amounts of money, the Board of Trustees, educational policy makers—these are the people who define the kind of education students receive. Therefore, I find it especially troubling that hate crimes occurred at a graduate school of education—the very people who will help shape educational policy are among the same people who have committed these hate crimes. Admittedly, that seems like a broad generalization, but it is true. Hate crimes perpetrated by any group are unconscionable, but I find it particularly disturbing when it occurs among those who will yield tremendous influence—those who teach and those who determine what will be taught. In this way, when hate crimes reach the university level, we know that racism will most likely reach every level of society.

The most recent hate crime at TC involved hate mail sent to faculty members by an unknown individual or group. The specifics of the case, unlike in the well-publicized case involving Madonna Constantine, were never released to the media and never will be. I think the students of the University deserve to know what kind of hate crime occurred at the school because we have a right to know about the racial tensions that are among us. The hate crime involving Constantine was controversial—some accused her of faking the crime for publicity, many rallied around her, and shortly after the crime, she was charged with plagiarism and dismissed from TC. She asserted that the plagiarism charges were a result of institutional racism. I don’t know exactly how she intended the term, but she pointed to something legitimate—there is a kind of racism apart from that employed by stereotypical skinheads, and this is the kind of racism that is so subtle and pervasive that it could almost be missed. It is the kind of racism that promotes diversity but refuses to validate non-Western cultures and the kind of racism that accepts hate crimes quietly without providing a chance for dialogue. But isn’t this the opposite of what we seek as students? I think it is safe to say that part of what we seek is the chance for dialogue, for honesty and forthrightness from the administration concerning issues of prejudice and potential violence, and for seeking out and eradicating biases in ourselves and others. In fact, these are not mere desires—these are responsibilities that we must shoulder as part of higher learning.

I don’t know why the University administration chose to let almost every detail of the Constantine case out to the media and the students but are now refusing to inform even the students about the particulars of the most recent hate crime. The silence of the administration is dangerous because it keeps students ignorant of the challenges we face, but, more importantly, this silence teaches us that crimes motivated by bigotry should be accepted as a fact of life. Furthermore, this silence sets an example—if the University remains silent about racism and racially motivated crimes, then it is telling us to do the same by default. Education and the politics that swirl around it are among the most powerful forces in our society, but when called to action, I believe that students can be a much more powerful force—we can accept what is given to us or we can demand an education that is relevant and an administration that engages us in honest dialogue.

Nicole Winter is a student in the School of General Studies majoring in creative writing. Borderlands runs alternate Tuesdays. opinion@columbiaspectator.com