Student protesters take over UC Santa Cruz administration building w/ these demands:
1- Guarantee four-year housing for black students at the Rosa Parks building, which is marketed as a 'housing option for students interested in "historical, present-day, and future experiences of predominately Black/African American peoples,"' per the school.
2- They want that building/house to be painted red, green and black, the colors of black liberation. The house, in the middle of the Stevenson College** -which is a predominantly white-serving college- is to become a matter of symbolism and visibility, because there are black students are on the campus who pay to go there just like anyone else and they feel they do deserve to be seen on the campus.
3- And lastly, they want the university to offer diversity competency training to incoming students.
Let's start here: **UC Santa Cruz has a distinctive residential college system in which all undergraduate students, whether they live in university housing or not, are affiliated with one of 10 colleges. In addition to housing students in small-scale residential communities, each college offers courses, provides academic support, organizes student activities, and sponsors events that enhance the intellectual and social life of the campus. College affiliation is independent of the choice of major. Every college community includes students with diverse backgrounds and academic goals.
So, you mean to tell me this college already takes into account and goes out of its way to promote diversity, inclusion, and enhancement of student's lives and goals?
Next, if you google "diversity competency" for the definition, you come up with: Cultural competence is defined as a set of values, behaviors, attitudes, and practices within a system, organization, program or among individuals, which enables them to work effectively, cross-culturally. So, these students are assuming that their fellow classmen are not culturally competent and should be taught how to be more culturally competent, while this group of students will immediately point out that "We don’t speak for the white students, the Samoan students or the Korean students" "Right now we speak for the African or black-Caribbean students". It seems that their attitudes are non-inclusive of other cultures, and there are even some media claims that the group made anti-semitic comments during this protest/occupation.
After doing some research, this is the most powerful piece that brought me to a greater understanding of "cultural competence"- because I was slightly offended that black people think other races need to be taught how to be competent. I was hoping that doing research would enlighten me and point out that they were not trying to be negative towards the other roughly 70% of the population....
(Inter)cultural competence is the ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with people of other cultures on two levels:
Appropriately- Valued rules, norms, and expectations of the relationship are not violated significantly.
Effectively- Valued goals or rewards (relative to costs and alternatives) are accomplished.
Starting there, I also felt this part was powerful...
Cultures can be different not only between continents or nations but also within the same company and even within the same family. The differences may be ethical, ethnic, geographical, historical, moral, political, or religious.
The basic requirements for intercultural competence are empathy, an understanding of other people's behaviors and ways of thinking, and the ability to express one's own way of thinking. It is a balance, situatively adapted, among four parts:
Knowledge (about other cultures and other people's behaviors)
Empathy (understanding the feelings and needs of other people)
Self-confidence (knowledge of one's own desires, strengths, weaknesses, and emotional stability)
Cultural identity (knowledge of one's own culture)
Cultural competence can be summed up as the ability to understand, appreciate, and interact with persons from cultures and/or belief systems other than one’s own, based on various factors. So, in fact, that means that blacks need to understand appreciate and interact as much as white, as much as Asians, as much as northern Europeans and as much as Indians (as in, the continent). EVERYONE needs to do it.
I hate to say I felt "triggered" by this discussion, but I did notice some unfair treatment on my own campus while I was there, so I guess I take it somewhat personally. The "Students for Diversity" had not one white person in the group. The black football and basketball players got full scholarships while the white ones got less. An agricultural school was turned liberal arts because it was told it was not inclusive. I was told I was too white to be used in college propaganda, too white to deliver the commencement speech... just too white in general. A farming school was forced to drop its draws and bend over and take it .... all in the name of diversity. I'm sorry but, how many black farmers do you know? How many black people actually took the agricultural based classes? I had not one in any of my core classes. They were on campus, they were seen, they were heard, they were integrated... but the school no longer has the designation of "farm school" or "school of agriculture". To survive, it became "diverse" and "inclusive". My major doesn't exist anymore. The animals I cared for and learned through are dwindling. But it's diverse. Agriculture is not important on the outskirts of the Garden State. Good luck getting that organic food you all love for cheaper. You can't do that if farmers aren't learning the latest techniques. Good luck getting high-quality beef, pork, or dairy with no antibiotics and free roaming... if farmers can't afford to raise animals like that, they will stop. If they can't come up with new approaches to appease the masses and make it worth their while, they'll stop. You wanted have FOOD. But you'll have diversity.
That's just my school. The school here that had a "sit-in", they are progressive, they are culturally aware and sensitive. And they were taken over by 100 cry babies. I feel bad for the other 16,000 students who will be forced to take "cultural competency classes", who have to fit that in with their 18 credits (core classes) required per semester to graduate on time. And that's just this year. Every year, every incoming freshman will waste a time slot on this. I thought taking physical education was a waste of my time. I thought taking English 1 & 2 was a waste of my time- I had 4 years of Honors English under my belt. I thought that when they added "Freshman Studies" -which was basically an 'intro to college' class- to the curriculum that, boy, were they wasting people's time and money on that. But now, let's micro manage our young adults and make sure that they don't enter college as racist or bigotted. Let's make sure they are compentent in other's feelings. That kind of learning, that kind of training, will get them much faryther in life than oh you know, first aid.
FML this world is going to hell in a hand basket.
1- Guarantee four-year housing for black students at the Rosa Parks building, which is marketed as a 'housing option for students interested in "historical, present-day, and future experiences of predominately Black/African American peoples,"' per the school.
2- They want that building/house to be painted red, green and black, the colors of black liberation. The house, in the middle of the Stevenson College** -which is a predominantly white-serving college- is to become a matter of symbolism and visibility, because there are black students are on the campus who pay to go there just like anyone else and they feel they do deserve to be seen on the campus.
3- And lastly, they want the university to offer diversity competency training to incoming students.
Let's start here: **UC Santa Cruz has a distinctive residential college system in which all undergraduate students, whether they live in university housing or not, are affiliated with one of 10 colleges. In addition to housing students in small-scale residential communities, each college offers courses, provides academic support, organizes student activities, and sponsors events that enhance the intellectual and social life of the campus. College affiliation is independent of the choice of major. Every college community includes students with diverse backgrounds and academic goals.
So, you mean to tell me this college already takes into account and goes out of its way to promote diversity, inclusion, and enhancement of student's lives and goals?
Next, if you google "diversity competency" for the definition, you come up with: Cultural competence is defined as a set of values, behaviors, attitudes, and practices within a system, organization, program or among individuals, which enables them to work effectively, cross-culturally. So, these students are assuming that their fellow classmen are not culturally competent and should be taught how to be more culturally competent, while this group of students will immediately point out that "We don’t speak for the white students, the Samoan students or the Korean students" "Right now we speak for the African or black-Caribbean students". It seems that their attitudes are non-inclusive of other cultures, and there are even some media claims that the group made anti-semitic comments during this protest/occupation.
After doing some research, this is the most powerful piece that brought me to a greater understanding of "cultural competence"- because I was slightly offended that black people think other races need to be taught how to be competent. I was hoping that doing research would enlighten me and point out that they were not trying to be negative towards the other roughly 70% of the population....
(Inter)cultural competence is the ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with people of other cultures on two levels:
Appropriately- Valued rules, norms, and expectations of the relationship are not violated significantly.
Effectively- Valued goals or rewards (relative to costs and alternatives) are accomplished.
Starting there, I also felt this part was powerful...
Cultures can be different not only between continents or nations but also within the same company and even within the same family. The differences may be ethical, ethnic, geographical, historical, moral, political, or religious.
The basic requirements for intercultural competence are empathy, an understanding of other people's behaviors and ways of thinking, and the ability to express one's own way of thinking. It is a balance, situatively adapted, among four parts:
Knowledge (about other cultures and other people's behaviors)
Empathy (understanding the feelings and needs of other people)
Self-confidence (knowledge of one's own desires, strengths, weaknesses, and emotional stability)
Cultural identity (knowledge of one's own culture)
Cultural competence can be summed up as the ability to understand, appreciate, and interact with persons from cultures and/or belief systems other than one’s own, based on various factors. So, in fact, that means that blacks need to understand appreciate and interact as much as white, as much as Asians, as much as northern Europeans and as much as Indians (as in, the continent). EVERYONE needs to do it.
I hate to say I felt "triggered" by this discussion, but I did notice some unfair treatment on my own campus while I was there, so I guess I take it somewhat personally. The "Students for Diversity" had not one white person in the group. The black football and basketball players got full scholarships while the white ones got less. An agricultural school was turned liberal arts because it was told it was not inclusive. I was told I was too white to be used in college propaganda, too white to deliver the commencement speech... just too white in general. A farming school was forced to drop its draws and bend over and take it .... all in the name of diversity. I'm sorry but, how many black farmers do you know? How many black people actually took the agricultural based classes? I had not one in any of my core classes. They were on campus, they were seen, they were heard, they were integrated... but the school no longer has the designation of "farm school" or "school of agriculture". To survive, it became "diverse" and "inclusive". My major doesn't exist anymore. The animals I cared for and learned through are dwindling. But it's diverse. Agriculture is not important on the outskirts of the Garden State. Good luck getting that organic food you all love for cheaper. You can't do that if farmers aren't learning the latest techniques. Good luck getting high-quality beef, pork, or dairy with no antibiotics and free roaming... if farmers can't afford to raise animals like that, they will stop. If they can't come up with new approaches to appease the masses and make it worth their while, they'll stop. You wanted have FOOD. But you'll have diversity.
That's just my school. The school here that had a "sit-in", they are progressive, they are culturally aware and sensitive. And they were taken over by 100 cry babies. I feel bad for the other 16,000 students who will be forced to take "cultural competency classes", who have to fit that in with their 18 credits (core classes) required per semester to graduate on time. And that's just this year. Every year, every incoming freshman will waste a time slot on this. I thought taking physical education was a waste of my time. I thought taking English 1 & 2 was a waste of my time- I had 4 years of Honors English under my belt. I thought that when they added "Freshman Studies" -which was basically an 'intro to college' class- to the curriculum that, boy, were they wasting people's time and money on that. But now, let's micro manage our young adults and make sure that they don't enter college as racist or bigotted. Let's make sure they are compentent in other's feelings. That kind of learning, that kind of training, will get them much faryther in life than oh you know, first aid.
FML this world is going to hell in a hand basket.
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