Professor Invites "STUDENTS OF COLOR ONLY" to Study Group

18.62K

Hamilton Nolan

09/16/13 08:43AM

Filed to: higher learning

Santiago Pinon is an assistant professor of religion at Texas Christian University, a school with a student body that is about 11% Hispanic. He is rather indelicate with his class emails.

As Inside Higher Ed reports, Pinon sent an email last week to some—but not all—students in one of his religion classes. It read: "At the beginning of the semester I usually like to invite all my students of color to get together and discuss the challenges they may face during the semester. However, the time slipped by and I didn't get a chance. So, I would like to ask if you are interested in a get together on Monday afternoon? We can also discuss the exam that is coming up, if you want. I don't mind if this would turn out to be a study session for my STUDENTS OF COLOR ONLY."

Pinon's motivations may have been noble. There are certainly unique challenges faced by students of color in an environment like Texas Christian University. But there are a couple of problems with his email:

1) He apparently chose its recipients simply by going through the list of students and picking out the ones with "Hispanic last names," not all of whom even identify as "students of color."

2) When questioned about the email, Pinon told Inside Higher Ed, "I should have been more clear in that the study group is open to all students." This would seem to be contradicted by the line of the email that reads, "I don't mind if this would turn out to be a study session for my STUDENTS OF COLOR ONLY."

No matter how fucking annoying white Texas Christians may be, you still have to invite them to your study group.

[Inside Higher Ed. Photo: plerd/ Flickr]

The following replies are approved. To see additional replies that are pending approval, click Show Pending. Warning: These may contain graphic material.

9

burlivesleftnut Hamilton Nolan 09/16/13 09:01AM

At University of Texas, as a Lit Major, I made the mistake of signing up for an Authors of the American Southwest class. It really turned out to be an "All White People Did Was Maim and Kill Mexicans Along the Border and Still Do Every Day" class. I kept getting bad grades (my major GPO was 4.0), and when I asked the professor what the problem was, he said blatantly it was the color of my skin. I really didn't think much of it because I might have 99 problems but being white isn't one of them. He told me I could rub my face in the dirt at his feet for a thousand years and he would never pass me.

I quit going to class after that and took and Incomplete F, but made it up the following semester with a class to replace that one.

There's a part of me that understands the need to be around your people (obv I'm white and around whites like 90% of the time), but maybe this professor should have been a little more chill in his email. I'd also recommend he cultivate an email list of like minded students and have them spread the word/add more to the email list.

24

Hawk burlivesleftnut 09/16/13 09:15AM

This is either a lie or should have been reported. Seriously? Seriously? Sure.

Cool story, bro.

17

Crash Comet burlivesleftnut 09/16/13 09:20AM

As a self described white person who "feels the need to be around your people" and sees it as nothing but natural that you associate with almost no non-whites socially, you'll forgive everyone with a lick of common sense who doesn't believe you failed this class because of the professor's racism.

2

burlivesleftnut Hawk 09/16/13 09:21AM

Nope. True story. And when you're three weeks from the end of a semester, what are you supposed to do? "OH OMBUSDMAN, this prof hasn't been giving me the grades I deserve and he says it's because I'm WHITE!" All the professor would have to say is that it was a ridiculous accusation and that he can prove by his standards that my work was subpar. No win.

1

burlivesleftnut Crash Comet 09/16/13 09:28AM

I didn't say I felt the need to be around my people. I said I understood it, and used me as an anecdotal example as to why that might be the case. I'll hang with anyone. When I was in Houston it was mostly hispanics. I live in South Bend now. The only time I see people of color is when they are at a park near my house barbecuing on weekends. Should I crash their family gathering and said I need more people of color in my life. Where the fuck do you live that you're in some multicultural paradise.

And further, I'm sharing a store that happened to me. I think it's heavily implied that I didn't care the professor was racist to me. I don't care what his beliefs were. He's entitled to them and can't fault him. But I wish he'd let me know at the beginning of the semester when I could have switched to another class. But to your point, he admitted to me that he had a problem with white students. So sure, that is somehow my fault.

2

St. Ridley Santos Hamilton Nolan 09/16/13 10:00AM

Anyone else hate the phrase "X of color"? It's just a people first version of "colored people", so you know, not really hiding the problems with the language very well at all.

1

You might be wrong. St. Ridley Santos 09/16/13 10:27AM

I've been called a racist for not using the term even though it's a nearly exclusively American term and I'm not American.

1

St. Ridley Santos You might be wrong. 09/16/13 10:41AM

Well that sucks.

I wouldn't go so far as to call anyone racist just for using it. It's well-intentioned, but damn couldn't they have found any better term to use?

Spram the Very Shy Person St. Ridley Santos 09/16/13 11:29AM

it also assumes white people don't have colors. With blonde/red hair abd blue/green eyes, they're pretty much walking rainbows.

MizJenkins St. Ridley Santos 09/16/13 02:39PM

What "better" term do you have in mind?

12

ManchuCandidate Hamilton Nolan 09/16/13 08:48AM

It wouldn't be the first time a prof or in this case a "prof" caused an uproar over a study group.

1

Pöòt ManchuCandidate 09/16/13 08:50AM

That certainly is a reference to a movie or TV show, I'll give you that.

8

TheOmbudsman Hamilton Nolan 09/16/13 08:50AM

One assumes the "challenges they may face this semester" this professor is talking about include those involving their ethnicities and how their fellow, paler students may treat them due to their ethnicities?

If so, then yes, invite white students too. Because those kids need to hear what it's like to be in the minority, and how those kids get treated. I imagine including white kids in those groups may go farther to dealing with the issue than just inviting minority students and possibly coaching them on how to deal with situations, which doesn't do anything to improve things so those changes don't happen anymore.

13

muffin_cupcake TheOmbudsman 09/16/13 09:49AM

But if you invite the white students, the dynamic of the discussion will be completely different. White students will get defensive, or go out of their way to emphasize that they're not racist, and just generally derail the entire discussion. It will also make the non-white students feel like they can't speak freely. Open discussions are an important part of college, but it's not the same as having a safe discussion space where everyone is already on board with the basic reality of your experience.

1

TheOmbudsman muffin_cupcake 09/16/13 09:52AM

You say "will" a lot, as if you figure that's the only possible outcome.

I'll agree, it's the most likely outcome - but maybe something better could come out of it, too.

Perhaps a mix of get-togethers would be in order.

4

willburnforfood TheOmbudsman 09/16/13 09:54AM

Dude, you comment on Gawker. You see every day how the comments go when the discussion turns to race. Experiencing that in real life with people that you have to see for the entire semester would make things uncomfortable.

TheOmbudsman willburnforfood 09/16/13 10:02AM

Yes, but we're special here.

In the Olympics sense.

Joking aside, surely you're aware how different people act online, anonymously and without fear of reprisal, vs. in close proximity to each other. People who are dickbags here aren't necessarily dickbags to people they meet on the street.