More P.C. Indoctination Needed at 'Racist' Ryerson--Task Force

Located in downtown Toronto, Ryerson University is about as "diverse" as it gets. In fact, the most visible minority on campus is probably the, er, Caucasians. And yet, reports the Toronto Star in an exclusive, a lengthy investigation has revealed that, on occasion, a "racist" remark or attitude manages to break through the p.c. quietude--like a loud fart in church. Then, too, there are those students who complain of a palpable "chill," and who are upset that the faculty isn't nearly as, um, "diverse" as they are:

A sweeping year-long probe into racism at Ryerson University has found a staggeringly diverse campus where some visible minority students say they feel harassed and excluded, where profs don't always deal with offensive comments made in class and some non-white staff report a "chill" that shuts them out of the power loop.

The 107-page report, commissioned by the university after a string of racist incidents in 2008, calls for immediate anti-racism training for senior staff, sharper targets for hiring visible minorities, more courses on diversity and the collection of race-based statistics on staff and students so the university can track whether equity is improving.

While noting most students and staff call the booming downtown campus "a great place to learn and work," the report, to be released Monday, cites a worrying lack of diversity in faculties such as communication and design, a need for more ESL support in programs such as nursing and business, and more black professors across the board.

Ryerson is the latest Ontario university to examine how it approaches its growing diversity; York University, the University of Western Ontario and Queen's University have reviewed aspects of how they approach minority rights and cultural tension in recent years.

"Each and every one of us needs to take responsibility for the university becoming a truly inclusive environment," declared the study by the task force of staff, students and community members that was co-chaired by Ryerson professor Grace-Edward Galabuzi and University of Toronto professor Eileen Antone, a member of the Oneida of the Thames First Nation.

Some of the incidents that prompted the appointment of the task force include the burning of an African students' club bulletin board and death threats against a student leader for being a "race traitor."

The report by the Task Force on Racism at Ryerson tells of students who say overt and subtle racism makes it difficult for them to fit in and at times makes the learning environment "toxic."

"Fostering a racism-free and inclusive environment requires bold leadership, action and vigilance on the part of everyone in the Ryerson community, and there are key gaps the institution needs to address," said the report, a copy of which was obtained by the Star.

"Many minority faculty believe there is a `chilly climate' at Ryerson that includes stereotyping, double standards, isolation, exclusion and condescension. One member put it this way: `Many of us feel we are in a game that we don't really know the rules of.'"

A five-month task force at York University last year also examined ways to diffuse racial and political tensions on that campus.

The Ryerson task force used face-to-face interviews, surveys and forums to uncover a campus where some Muslim students resent having to lift their face-coverings to enter the library, where Jewish students have reported eight incidents of anti-Semitic harassment in 18 months and native students say security guards have mistaken them for homeless trespassers...

Couldn't you just puke? Oh, not at all the "racism," which seems to boil down to a handful of incidents, many if not most of which appear to be the work of minority students. (Who's hassling the Jewish kids? I highly doubt it's skinhead types.) At the wallowing in guilt. The egregious hand-wringing. The sackcloth and ashes. The 'woe-is-us-we-ain't-a-P.C.-Utopia' piffle. And--barferama--at the fascist "atonements": the "diversity" classes, the hiring of more black and aboriginal faculty (which, excuse me, is actually kind of "racist" since it concerns itself not with the content of a professor's C.V. or character but with the colour of her/his skin).

If there's a big "chill" on campus now, just wait till all the "inclusiveness" and "diversity" stuff the report recommends kicks in. The place'll be so chillin' that everyone (with the exception, of course, of the America/Israel/capitalism-loathers) will be afraid to open his mouth.