Balkanization In Baltimore

A Johns Hopkins undergraduate has written a thoughtful and well-written article decrying the lack of real diversity at that institution.

I don’t agree with all of his suggestions, but his observations strike me as keen. Here’s a particularly telling one:

Every student I have spoken to has been quick to point out the fact that this is a very divided campus. A casual glance around the cafeterias, lounges or other public spaces is generally enough to confirm this sentiment. Furthermore, I am afraid that many of the school’s pro-diversity policies are ultimately counterproductive.

First, there is the very real feeling among many white students that they are not represented or acknowledged….

The other major problem with segregation here at Hopkins is that black students are clearly still not as integrated as most other groups. Most of the people I spoke to do not have many, if any, close friends who are black. It’s true that only five percent of the students here are black, but Hispanics (who are only six percent) seemed to have many more friends across racial and ethnic lines.

Some students attributed this to the idea that more than any other group, black students were here as a result of affirmative-action policies. Whether this is true or not is beside the point, it is the perception of difference that leads to Balkanization, and that perception is very much alive at Hopkins.

Say What? (3)

  1. Paul March 4, 2006 at 4:09 pm | | Reply

    Is this any different than at other universities? You can’t force people to mingle. You can try to reason with them but you cannot force them.

  2. DavidJ March 4, 2006 at 5:36 pm | | Reply

    >>>Is this any different than at other universities?

    Or… any other place on Earth.

    As for the article itself:

    >>>Whether this is true or not is beside the point, it is the perception of difference that leads to Balkanization

    That seems a little naive to me. The most surefire way for differences to be perceived is for them to exist in reality. If AA’s a major factor in admission, there really is going to be a big difference between the black students and the white students, and this difference will be expressed in the way they socialize. Can’t have your cake and eat it too, I guess.

  3. Laura March 5, 2006 at 2:12 pm | | Reply

    I don’t think AA is keeping people from mingling. I think it’s fear of rejection. It’s painful to offer friendship to a stranger and have him turn his back, and that’s more likely to happen when you try to make friends outside your group.

    Also, I suspect that college-age people are especially vulnerable to this kind of thing. A child typically isn’t afraid to try to make friends across lines until he’s had a few experiences with rejection, or until some adult in his life “helps” him by explaining that he needs to stick to his own kind. And by the time a person gets to my age, I hope he’s philosophical enough to keep on being friendly to strangers because rejections aren’t that big a deal.

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