The Placemat Problem
In Annenberg Hall and at least some House dining halls, students are being treated to a healthy helping of social justice reeducation, courtesy of Harvard College’s Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.
College administrators distributed a “Holiday Placemat for Social Justice” instructing students on how to answer questions they might face from family and friends. The handout presents poorly written, straw man questions followed by seemingly official and definitive “responses” on topics as varied as the Syrian refugee question, the Black Lives Matter movement, the misguided decision to change the House master title, and the ongoing, overheated activism at Yale University.
Before addressing the poorly contextualized framing of the questions, the impropriety of forcing College-endorsed political positions on students, and the groupthink this creates, let us examine the source.
More than half of the College’s poster is taken word-for-word from a similar, credited poster created by the group Showing Up for Racial Justice, a rather fitting reflection of the thoughtlessness it seeks to impose on students. That organization’s professed aim is to move “white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability.” To gain some perspective on their viewpoint, examine a recent article on their site that claimed, “we know that racist vigilantes and the police force have a long, collaborative history with one another.”
There was one area where the handout did not lazily lift from its predecessor: on the recent renaming of House masters to something supposedly less offensive—at least for now. There, the questioner correctly points out “Why did they change the name? What does a housemaster have to do with slavery? It’s not related to that at all.”
That doesn’t matter, the handout replies. Even though the word is “no longer actively associated with its historical antecedents”—and notice here the incorrect suggestion that the two were related, which is presented as fact—it is still offensive “for some.” Therefore, “it doesn’t seem onerous to change it.” Read the whole Harvard version here.
After getting caught and hitting cable networks attention, here comes the apology.
Harvard Apologizes for ‘Social Justice’ Placemats After Outrage
FreeBeacon: Harvard officials were forced to apologize Wednesday after a university office distributed placemats that promoted political opinions about race and justice.
The placemats, which recently turned up in an undergraduate dining hall, appeared to brand Americans worried about the U.S. accepting tens of thousands of refugees from Syria Islamophobic. They also encouraged political opinions about allegations of racism at Yale University, the deaths of African Americans at the hands of police officers, and the school’s decision to change the title of “House Master” because some argue that it relates to slavery.
Two Harvard deans penned an apology note to community members after students expressed outrage at the placemats and claimed they promoted political stances.
“We write to acknowledge that the placemat distributed in some of your dining halls this week failed to account for the many viewpoints that exist on our campus on some of the most complex issues we confront as a community and society today,” Stephen Lassoed, dean of student life, and Thomas Dingman, dean of freshmen, wrote in the message Wednesday.
“Our goal was to provide a framework for you to engage in conversations with peers and family members as you return home for the winter break, however, it was not effectively presented and it ultimately caused confusion in our community.”
The deans offered their “sincere apologies” for the placemats, which were distributed by Harvard’s Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.
“Academic freedom is central to all that Harvard College stands for. To suggest that there is only one point of view on each of these issues runs counter to our educational goals. We appreciate the feedback that we have received about this initiative. Moving forward we will, with your continued input, support the growth and the development of independent minds,” the deans further wrote.
Idrees Kahloon, a Harvard senior who criticized the “holiday placemats for social justice” in an op-ed published in the Harvard Crimson, told the Free Beacon Wednesday that the placemats were met with criticism across campus.
The Harvard Republican Club took issue with the placemats, creating its own parody placemat and distributing copies at a school dining hall Wednesday.
The placemats were the result of a collaboration between the Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and the Freshman Dean’s Office.
