When to Use the Word "Racist"

  • Press_Release
  • December 07, 2010

PRINCETON, NJ (December 7, 2010)—Peter Wood, president of the National Association of Scholars, has published a statement, “Racism at Wesleyan?” on the use of the term “racist” in higher education. 

The statement was prompted by a recent controversy at Wesleyan University. A student group on campus, the Cardinal Conservatives, held a satiric “affirmative action bake sale” to protest the university’s use of racial preferences in admissions. A faculty member denounced the event as “racist.” Civil rights activist Ward Connerly is scheduled to speak at Wesleyan about the controversy at 4:00 PM on December 8. 

Wood defined racism as “the belief that humans are profoundly and importantly divided into hereditary groups; that these groups are inherently unequal in talents and ability; and that their hereditary characteristics are crucial to understanding their group attitudes, mores, and ideas.” He wrote that racism is not always associated with white privilege. 

Wood argued against censoring the term “racist” but pointed out that the word can be abused as a label “to intimidate and to polarize,” as was the case at Wesleyan University. He advocated eliminating racial preferences in college admissions: 

We would as a society be better off if we jettisoned race from our consideration of how public goods such as college admissions are distributed.  Getting rid of race, like getting rid of racism, is far from easy, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take the preliminary steps.  One of those is de-institutionalizing racial categories. 

Wood’s article appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education on December 7, 2010. 

The National Association of Scholars advocates for higher education reform. To learn more about NAS, visit www.nas.org.

 ####

CONTACT: Peter Wood, President, NAS: 609-683-7878; [email protected]

  • Share

Most Commented

September 6, 2024

1.

Professor Alleges "Widespread" Discriminatory Hiring Coverup at University of Washington

Audio acquired by the National Association of Scholars describes allegations of coverup race-based hiring coverup at the University of Washington...

October 29, 2024

2.

The Looming Irrelevance of Middle East Study Centers

Today’s Middle Eastern Studies Centers are facing a crisis due to the winds of change in the Middle East and their own ideological echo chamber....

September 25, 2024

3.

NAS Statement on University of Pennsylvania Sanction of Amy Wax

The National Association of Scholars is outraged—but not surprised—by Penn's decision to penalize Wax for exercising her academic freedom. ...

Most Read

May 15, 2015

1.

Where Did We Get the Idea That Only White People Can Be Racist?

A look at the double standard that has arisen regarding racism, illustrated recently by the reaction to a black professor's biased comments on Twitter....

October 12, 2010

2.

Ask a Scholar: What is the True Definition of Latino?

What does it mean to be Latino? Are only Latin American people Latino, or does the term apply to anyone whose language derived from Latin?...

September 21, 2010

3.

Ask a Scholar: What Does YHWH Elohim Mean?

A reader asks, "If Elohim refers to multiple 'gods,' then Yhwh Elohim really means Lord of Gods...the one of many, right?" A Hebrew expert answers....