Segregation.

[Gob]

Last week, Western Washington University announced 'black only' housing as part of its diversity and inclusion programme.

[Scooter]

Of course this

'Black Affinity Housing' [that] 'will explore and celebrate the diversity of Black and African American people and culture'

does not remotely equate to this

'black only' housing

but what's a grossly sensationalistic misrepresentation or two in support of a white fragility narrative.

[Bicycle Bill]

Whether you are forced to be there (as when the Nazis restricted Polish Jews to the ghettos as part of the "Final Solution", or post-Civil War 'Jim Crow' rules and restrictions, including "sunset towns") or voluntarily choose to isolate yourself among others of your own color/ethnic origin/religious practice/gender/sexual preferences, a ghetto is still a ghetto.   Segregation is still segregation, and just because you call it "Chinatown", "Little Italy", "the Jewish Quarter", "the boondocks" — or even "Black Affinity Housing" — doesn't change that.

And before you get all over my ass for using the 'g'-word, remember, it didn't always mean "slum".   I'm taking back the language and using it in the manner of the Italian borghetto, or 'little city'.

-"BB"-

[MajGenl.Meade]

Of course this

'Black Affinity Housing' [that] 'will explore and celebrate the diversity of Black and African American people and culture'

does not remotely equate to this

'black only' housing

but what's a grossly sensationalistic misrepresentation or two in support of a white fragility narrative.

Uh, yes it does.

Under the 'Black Affinity Housing' program, 40 students of color will be allowed to opt for separate housing on campus in Bellingham, Washington.... Under Western Washington's program, 40 students will be housed separately on the fourth floor of Alma Clark Glass Hall.

https://meaww.com/western-washington-un ... -reactions

[ex-khobar Andy]

From the Housing FAQ page at wwu.edu:

I saw a news story that said Black Affinity Housing is segregated. Is this true?

No. WWU does not discriminate on the basis of race. No student is required to join the Black Affinity Housing community, and no student is excluded from joining it. The community welcomes all residents who are interested in exploring and celebrating the diversity of Black and African American people and culture, with historical and contemporary contexts.

However I doubt that the 40 set aside dorm spots will be much oversubscribed by white students. Unless of course - and this is my 1960s era troublemaking self coming out - thousands of white students apply for the limited space available. That would create an interesting situation. I think this is total bollocks.

[Scooter]

What's that you say? The Daily Mail actually got it wrong? Quelle surprise.

The university I attended had a section within a residence called La Maison Française, where students interested in living in a French speaking environment and participating in French and Québecois cultural activities could live. It was inhabited almost, but not quite exclusively, by students whose first language was French, who came from French speaking communities from across Canada and abroad. Even in the fevered politics around Quebec separatism in the 1980s, no one would have been moronic enough to accuse the university of "segregation". But then again, the university was not populated by and large by anglo-racist nutjobs anxious to put their fragility on display.

[TPFKA@W]

For some reason this came to mind:

[Crackpot]

No you mean this

[Joe Guy]

Where do I sign up?.....

Joe Black Guy.jpg (4.79 KiB) Viewed 1779 times

[Guinevere]

OFFS - universities have had cooperative housing that focuses on particular interests, for decades. Cornell has, among other options, Risley Hall (arts/theatre), Eco House (granola), and Ujamaa.

Ujamaa (pronounced "OO-juh-muh") celebrates the rich and diverse heritage of Black people in the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, and other regions of the world.

The word Ujamaa in the East African language of Kiswahili means the process of working together as an extended family to build and maintain a cohesive community. This theme characterizes the atmosphere at Ujamaa Residential College, a friendly, warm, and cooperative living environment that supports its members and helps students excel at Cornell.

Since its founding in 1972, Ujamaa has supported its mission through a variety of activities and events such as lectures by internationally renowned speakers, dinners hosted by affiliated faculty members, celebrating Black History Month, and hosting the State of Black America Conference, the annual Festival of Black Gospel, and the weekly student-organized forum Unity Hour - at which lively and educational discussions are never in short supply.[/url]

[Gob]

Now imagine if they'd stated;

Under the 'White Affinity Housing' program, 40 white students will be allowed to opt for separate housing on campus in Bellingham, Washington.

Under Western Washington's program, 40 students will be housed separately on the fourth floor of Alma Clark Glass Hall. The hall is named after the first white student to attend Western Washington University in 1906. "Regular programmatic events and interactions allow students to deepen knowledge and understanding of themselves, peers, and the world," says the dedicated website at Western Washington.

The university held a webinar in April to talk about the program, and announce it would adopt it in the fall semester. As part of the program, "staff will organize opportunities for residents to attend white-centered events and general university programs as a group."

[Gob]

What's that you say? The Daily Mail actually got it wrong?

Can you point out what they got "wrong" please?

[MajGenl.Meade]

OFFS - universities have had cooperative housing that focuses on particular interests, for decades. Cornell has, among other options, Risley Hall (arts/theatre), Eco House (granola), and Ujamaa.

As in the link I shared:

The university isn't the first to adopt affinity housing, similar programs have been enacted at the University of Colorado at Boulder, Stanford University, and Cornell University. Under the program, Black students are given a separate wing or residential facility, along with other events and facilities to enhance the student experience. Affinity housing isn't limited to race, it can also be enacted for religion and sexual identity.

One of my favorite Parkinson interviews of all time . . . (though not his, perhaps). Red birds and blue birds - they all birds.

[Scooter]

What's that you say? The Daily Mail actually got it wrong?

Can you point out what they got "wrong" please?

Because, as Andy showed by going directly to the source, it is not "black-only" housing.

[ex-khobar Andy]

And, if you don't want to be vaccinated, you can join 'Pastor' Jackson Lahmeyer's church in Tulsa. All you have to do is send him a few bucks and he will sign a religious exemption form for you which will allow you to work anywhere there is a vaccination mandate. New York schools, for example.

https://ktul.com/news/local/tulsa-pasto ... id-vaccine

Someone remind me why we are any different from the Taliban?

[Sue U]

Enabling students to choose to form a community based on cultural affinity is not "segregation" any more than is having a Black Student Union or Hillel on campus, or sororities and fraternities like Zeta Phi Beta or Alpha Epsilon Pi. (Incidentally, in my first year at college I joined the BSU, largely because my friend from down the hall had joined and we could always get a seat at the organization's table in the dining hall.) As noted above, for decades many universities have had residence halls devoted to particular cultural affinities, particularly French, German and Spanish. Recognizing and supporting diversity of ethnicity and culture in a student body is hardly some form of Jim Crow. The Daily Mail story linked in the OP is the usual hyperventilating slop of context-free manufactured outrage pandering to the most vile racist leanings of its readership. But I guess actually enlightening readers is much less profitable than setting them on fire.

[BoSoxGal]

My first year on campus I lived in the all female dorm, by choice - it was a lovely old building with gorgeous architecture and I didn’t want to have to navigate drunk boys going to the restroom at night. I loved it. Right across the road was the ‘hippy’ dorm where one of my best friends lived - loved spending time there, too.

I’ve been reading the Daily Mail for too many years now, since Gob’s posts here introduced me to it. I recently gave it up entirely when I got sick of seeing the perverted lens they put on the very same facts that appear entirely differently on the Independent, Guardian or CNN websites. The DM is all about the hate - they love hate more than anything else. They’re just like FOX ‘News’.

[Gob]

Because, as Andy showed by going directly to the source, it is not "black-only" housing.

Then why is it described as "Black only"?

Western Washington University (WWU) in Seattle has established housing specifically for Black students on its campus, Newsweek reports.

Beginning in the fall semester, 40 Black students had the option to reside in dormitories earmarked just for Black students.

The Black-only dorm rooms will be located on the fourth floor of the Alma Clark Glass Hall, which was named for the first Black student to attend Western Washington University in 1906.

[Sue U]

Because, as Andy showed by going directly to the source, it is not "black-only" housing.

Then why is it described as "Black only"?

Western Washington University (WWU) in Seattle has established housing specifically for Black students on its campus, Newsweek reports.

Beginning in the fall semester, 40 Black students had the option to reside in dormitories earmarked just for Black students.

The Black-only dorm rooms will be located on the fourth floor of the Alma Clark Glass Hall, which was named for the first Black student to attend Western Washington University in 1906.

I don't know where you got that from, but right off the bat it's wrong. Western Washington University is not in Seattle, it's in Bellingham, about a hundred miles north.

And XKA supplied the link to the actual university website with its on-campus housing information, which states "Any student interested in Black Affinity Housing and committed to the goals of the program is encouraged to submit a request form." Last I heard from Merriam-Webster's, "any student" =/= "black only."

[MajGenl.Meade]

The Daily Mail story linked in the OP is the usual hyperventilating slop of context-free manufactured outrage pandering to the most vile racist leanings of its readership.

What gave them away?