Scholarship Discrimination: What about Merit and Need?
Published October 13th, 2006 in Cultural, Education, PoliticalI never have heard a satisfactory explanation for why racism against whites (and males in particular) is legal. It’s one of those things that I have kept off my mind for quite a while, but then I saw something that brought it back up. I was browsing for scholarships intended for teachers and I found the Minority Teacher Scholarship. The information is actually hosted on the Indiana government site! Now, I’m sure some people will read this and think, “This guy is racist!” Sorry, it’s not that easy.
Let’s take a wild scenario… Person 1 is a white 18-year-old who is supporting himself at a minimum-wage job. Neither of his parents are around to help him. He’s a lower-class guy who really enjoyed high school, so he wants to be a teacher. He worked hard in high school and made good grades, hoping that would help him with scholarships so that he could better his life and become a teacher.
Person 2 is a black businessman. He’s only 22, but he already owns his own business because his parents make millions from their businesses. His regular income is easily in the six-figure range and he drives a Ferrari. He too enjoyed the high school atmosphere and wants to become a teacher, but he didn’t try hard in high school and earned a 2.0 from his private school.
If these two people want the scholarship, only person 2 can earn it. That’s right, race is more important than need or merit. Yes, this is an unlikely and extreme example, but what difference does it make? If person 1 made $20,000 a year and person 2 made $30,000, the situation would be the same. The second person would earn the scholarship based entirely on skin color.
I decided to do a little research to figure out why it’s okay to be openly racist on a government site and I found Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech. Here is the part that is relevant:
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. Oh yeah, if my kids can get a leg-up on those damn white kids just by having non-white skin, then ignore my first sentence!”
After that the crowd started chanting “Black Power!” and lynched a bunch of whities. After all, they deserved it!
Yes, I can be a bit extreme, and I mean no respect to MLK Jr. His speech (and the work he did) was incredible. I also mean no disrespect to non-white people (or white people for that matter). My point is that scholarships should be based on only two things: need and merit. There’s no reason to pay attention to race or sex or hair color or anything else besides need and merit. If the black child is living in poverty, he has need for the scholarship, just as if he was white or female. If he earns a 4.0, then he has merit and could potentially earn a “continuing excellent” type of scholarship. If race is any part of the determination (or part of the eligibility requirements), then that is racism, period.
I was angry and wrote this essay to vent… but your exactly right
I feel I have been discriminated against. I am a white male who is friends with blacks, Latinos, and anyone of any race. I am a smart kid and I know that discrimination is mainly affiliated with anyone who is not white or close to having white skin. Most people when they read this would say, “O he’s going to hell,†or something to that extent.
Whites have many times in the past of this country discriminated against blacks. Most of the hatred comes from being raised from birth to hate them; I was fortunate enough to be raise a tolerant parents and my first friend was even black even though I didn’t really see us as any different. I know that whites in Texas are quickly becoming more and more outnumbered; although many would argue that the numbers don’t show it, I see it every day. Discrimination has been outlawed many times by many different laws, but there is something that they do not take into account. We now treat all races as we treat our own race, but the government and scholarships still acts as though they were just released from bondage.
I work hard for my grades and don’t wimp out when the class gets hard. Moreover, I don’t cheat on test and other assignments when I don’t feel like doing my work, like many other students. However, am I rewarded? No. I fill out scholarships all the time, trying to get a cheaper education, so that I may better the world. I see many times over that a requirement of a scholarship is to be “a minority,†and think well that’s one less I can do. Is this really fair? Is that not discriminating against anyone who is white? My fellow Caucasians and I are denied the right to an equal education because we cannot afford a certain colleges even with loans. That is not right. A person should be judged by their achievements, their efforts and their citizenship. Is that not what blacks fought and died for not so long ago? Then why does the color of skin matter now, when it comes to rewards? Many counter that blacks have been denied many rights and are owed scholarships. But they have been given these rights and not one of my fellow black students has been the victim of denied rights in their lives.
A spark was lit when a black student in my class who barely passes his classes and cheats his way to passing at that, was awarded a one thousand scholarship for each year in college for his “good grades.†I quite frankly have no clue how a barely passing grade is good enough for a scholarship when someone who works hard and pays attention in class gets much higher grades and is thought nothing of even when they apply for many scholarships. Why should the fact that he is black disqualify every white person who does better? He has the exact same opportunities as every other student; in fact, he has a better opportunity because he is rich. If he had been a better student then I, I would not have been offended; I would have actually felt good that a deserving student was recognized in my own class. I know that I am much smarter and a better citizen then him; yet I am blown over because the color of my skin. The fact that I am a white lower-middle class male makes no difference. When there is a study that confirms that a minority student does not learn as well as a white student, I will not feel like I am being treated justly based on my skin color.
Also when blacks yell out “Black Power!†it is considered uplifting, and overcoming prejudice; yet when a white man yells it out he is considered a racist because he is proud of whom he is. Since when did having pride in your race make you a racist? When a person says “White power!†to put another down then yes, it should not be tolerated, but come on, why can’t I be proud of whom I am? I am glad that blacks have been granted the same rights as me, but haven’t they been actually given more then a white? Laws such as Affirmative Action have made minorities above whites. I am all for hiring minorities, but when the government takes it too far it has to be stopped.
I want justice because I was denied the “pursuit of happiness†and under civil rights laws I should not be denied this because of my race.
Hey Gordaen-
I read what you wrote. I can relate to you 100%. I have experienced everything you said throughout my education. I started a small non-profit organizaton for this very purpose. Are goal for 2008 is $50,000 in scholarships. This year we have been featured by over 10 different newspapers, 3 radio stations and 2 news stations. We have receievd national and local coverage with what we are doing. If you are interested in jumping on board and getting involved with letting others know shoot me an email I left above or simply if you just want to promote my site on your webpage- you can do that too. I would love to hear what you want to do to make a change.
Best,
dan brewer
“Student’s giving other students Scholarships- $1 at a time”
http://www.onedollarscholar.com
Hey-
Did you get my response?
best,
dan brewer
That’s an intriguing idea for scholarship donations (both the concept of a small contribution making a difference and the anti-discrimination stance of the scholarship(s)). If I have a chance in the near future, I’ll give the site a more thorough viewing and send you my thoughts. Either way, I’ll definitely let some people know about it. With the map of donation locations, I could see competition being valuable