UPDATED: Feb. 5, 2018 at 7:54 p.m.

College campuses tend to be written off as hotbeds of political correctness with little room for discussion, but “white racism” seems to get people talking.

Florida Gulf Coast University recently introduced a sociology class in which students would “interrogate the concept of race” and “examine racist ideologies.” That doesn’t sound too out of the ordinary. But controversy ensued after the class title, “White Racism,” was released.

Following backlash, campus police officers were stationed outside the classroom for its first lecture in a perfect illustration of what’s wrong in higher education. College classes must educate — not coddle — students when it comes to tough issues. In this case, students must be receptive to the fact that many people think of racism within the context of racial slurs and blatant prejudices, which fails to confront the less overt racism in our culture.

The language may not be easy to digest, but neither is the subject.

Ted Thornhill, an assistant professor of sociology at FGCU who teaches the course, said he was taken aback by the extreme responses to his class offering, including “malicious” and “vile” emails from campus community members.

Thornhill said students may have felt like they were being attacked for being white and took offense to the course description, which covers analyzing the “policies and practices that have operated for hundreds of years to maintain white racial domination over those racialized as non-white.”

Difficult issues can’t be solved by simple language. There’s so much historical and social context relevant to the discussion, which is why we need to refine our vocabulary and be more specific when talking about racism.

“Given the nature of our current political climate, it’s appropriate to title our courses in a more clear, powerful, succinct way — yet still being entirely appropriate,” Thornhill said.

University courses shouldn’t be biased, and they definitely shouldn’t be a megaphone for professors to voice their political beliefs. But it’s reasonable for professors to be upfront about their course objectives. This creates a better understanding of the curriculum, and it also helps students make a more well-rounded decision when choosing classes.

Thornhill said his course hosts about 50 students, mostly upperclassmen, along with a few second-year students. So far, they’ve had discussions about the myth of biological race and socialized systems of racism, and they’ve done some performative work like skits to become more conversant in these topics.

“Those individuals who don’t like the title, who simply want it to be called ‘Racism in America,’ are under the impression that racism is simply based on ideas and thoughts,” Thornhill said. “They conflate racism with racial prejudice … and what they fail to understand is that racism is a structural phenomenon.”

While certain subject matters can be complicated and difficult to talk about, at the end of the day, they’re inescapable. If students don’t talk about structural racism in the safety net of a classroom, they will still have to face it in the real world — without any knowledge or training.

Students should also remember that the social sciences are a type of science.

Thornhill emphasized the importance of empirical data and scholarship in sociology, and he encourages students not only to come forward to share their disagreements, but also to find evidence for their claims.

“We’re not just sharing opinions,” he said. “Find data that supports alternative thinking.”

And in the “fake news” era, this is all the more important. If hard science like climate change can be questioned, then the social sciences are at even greater risk of being called into question.

Rashika Jaipuriar is a junior broadcast and digital journalism and civic engagement dual major. Her column appears biweekly. She can be reached at rjaipuri@syr.edu and followed on Twitter @rashikajpr.

 

CLARIFICATION: In a previous version of this post, Ted Thornhill’s description of biological racism as a myth was unclear.

Published on February 4, 2018 at 8:08 pm