Bellevue Community College: We, the Board of Trustees of Bellevue Community College are deeply offended by the conduct of a math instructor at Bellevue Community College and strongly condemn this offensive behavior. This behavior is in gross violation of BCC’s mission and core value of respect for diversity. The instructor wrote an exam question that stated in part, “Condoleezza holds a watermelon just over the edge of the roof of the 300’ Federal Building, and tosses it up with a velocity of 20’ per second.” The question went on to ask when the watermelon will hit the ground based on a formula provided.
Er… why are they offended?
I heard this on the news this morning. I’m at a loss. Actually, I’ve noticed that the more I watch the local WA, the more lost I become, but that’s a post for another time.
You see, I don’t see how or why anyone could see this as offensive. In fact, I find that it being brought up as a “racism” issue to be more offensive than the “racial” problem. Consider the math problem in this light:
Guido holds a pizza just over the edge of the roof of the 300′ Federal Building, and tosses it up with a velocity of 20′ per second.
Woon Tang holds a wok just over the edge of the roof […]
Pedro holds a piñata just over the edge of the roof […]
Danny O’Grady holds a shamrock and a potato just over the edge of the roof […]
Any of that offensive? Shouldn’t be. The first issue here is that people are freaking out – as usual – because one race is being over sensitive to a cliché. A cliché that holds no ill will to the race. “Rabble!Rabble!Rabble!Rabble!Rabble!” Here we are – as usual – reacting to an artificial uproar by a group of people that chronically and selectively overreact to things they can capitalize on. If the question used any of the Italian, Asian, Mexican, or Irish stereotypes above, no one would give a rat’s ass about it. But oh no, of course not, not in this case. Suddenly everyone is panicked over an offense that shouldn’t even be considered offensive. What would be racially offensive?
Guido holds a mobster just over the edge of the roof of the 300′ Federal Building, and tosses it up with a velocity of 20′ per second.
Woon Tang holds an illegal alien massage worker just over the edge of the roof […]
Pedro holds a tortilla-wrapped putana just over the edge of the roof […]
Danny O-Grady holds his beaten wife and a bottle of whiskey just over the edge of the roof […]
Condoleezza holds a watermelon just over the edge of the roof […] after eating a bucket of fried chicken and chitlins and says “hey nigga, yo’ want some o’dis?”
Can you see the difference? I know I can. I wrote it that way on purpose: there’s a point being made there. Speaking of points, lets take a quick look at the professor involved. I don’t know a thing about him/her, but I’ve been a professor before so I can have some empathy, based on the benefit of doubt.
Writing exams are a pain in the ass. No other way to put it. In fact, I used to go through two or three drafts before each exam. Even after that, there were at least ten different questions/comments on each exam, as the students in my classes took them. Some questions were too vague. Some questions were missing key words. There’s always a worry that it would be boring or silly. It’s ever an easy thing, coming up with valid question, much less interesting scenarios.
So why “Condoleezza”? Maybe he had on CSPAN before writing; maybe there was a news report on the radio. We do have a Condoleezza in the news all the time now. Maybe there’s a student in the class that’s named Condoleezza. Why a watermelon? Why not a honeydew? Or cantaloupe? Or a safe? Or a bowling ball? Who am I to say? He could be a racial fucker. He might not be. He’s certainly not getting a benefit of the doubt in this case, and that’s really sorta bothering me.
All in all, it’s lame. Lame that this made the news. Lame that this is even considered a problem. Lame that I had to take time to post about it because I find it to be that ridiculous.
And before you liberal hippie pinkos out there start picketing my blog, here’s a little fact: this whole post is the logical reaction from non-racist point of view. All races are equal by this post’s definition. By singling out one race for ill or good is and should be considered racism, but that’s not what’s happening here.
Hella lame.
Randy, they are still going to call you racist, even though THEY are the ones in the uproar over it, pointing out that condolblahblah (cunnilingus as it’s been put by a certain black comedian)and watermelon have been put in the same sentence. Shit. My best friend in elementary school was black. I know she loved watermelon…just like my sister, just like my mom, just like everyone else.
Anna. Im guessing you read the comments on this site….Please get back to me about that thing I sent ya. Im trying to be nice.
@Anna – I know they will, but jeez. It’s a mess.
@Chad – ?
Haha, Watermelon.
Hey they should be honored that they are including black people in word problems to begin with. They were pissed that hurricanes never got “african american” names.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=33896
At least we included them in a math problem and not name a 200 MPH rain/wind death spiral after them. At least we’re assuming that black people can do math. And even read a word problem.
:)
Since I am a “them” I find it odd that they’d use such an example on an exam. Not that I’m a Condelezza fan by any means. But, why didn’t they use an object like a book, oil can or wad of cash. After all, she’s college educated (or should that be edumacted), sat on the board of an oil company and is richer than a lot of us. But, no. The professor at the college chose to use a racial stereotype. You know the kind; “they” all like watermelon and fried chicken. Me being a “them”, I can tell you that I hold no such preference. Now, if you can’t see the problem with that, then what does that make you? A racist? I can’t really be certain. Does that make you insensitive? Ding, ding, ding, ding! We have a winner!!
Ah, but see the problem is that I don’t see why there’s even a problem. You said it yourself: why a watermelon? Why NOT a watermelon? Not that I know what the teacher was thinking – I’m just offering the guy the benefit of the doubt.
It’s not like he said she dangled a baby off the side of a rooftop. Oh, wait, is that a racial stereotype too because Michael Jackson did it?