Homophobia, prejudice, social variances discussed
Writer defends
himself, opinion
In the past few days I have been
termed a homophobic, bigot, war
monger and a crybaby. All by people
who have never even met me, let
alone know me well enough to make
such malicious comments about what
type of person that I am. I realized
that when I addressed the issue of
homosexuals in the military that I
would be the subject of sharply worded
criticisms. However, I did not believe
others would be quite so judgmental
and launch such ruthless attacks upon
my character. So be it. To quote a
fellow paratrooper, “Sometimes, you
just have to stand in the door.”
I could fill up a entire page of the
DN refuting the unfounded accusa
tions of Joyce C. Melvin, Lawrence
Jones and James A. Zank, but have
neither the time nor the desire.
What counts is that not one person
who knows me has expressed his or
her disagreement with the letter, nor
has anyone that knows me accused
me of being a bigot. None of these
three related any personal experiences
in the military or did an adequate job
of supporting their assertion that my
letter was simply homophobic tripe.
That is why I know that I am right and
have “stood in the door” for the right
reasons.
Douglas J. Shonka
senior
political science
View is narrow,
reader says
Joseph Ryan, in response to your
letter (DN, April 30) I can only say
that, as a white male with North Euro
pean lineage, I’m really sorry that
you feel the way you do. Being in my
early 20s and being bom in the South,
(gee, I’m a Republican too) I was
taken by surprise by your extremely
derogatory comments about myself
and others with my ancestry. It is
obvious that you feel that as a group,
Americans of European descent are
doing everything possible to suppress
all minorities in the U.S.
I agree with you that, being a part
of the majority in the U.S., it is diffi
cult to pul myself in your position as
a member of a minority group. But
when it comes to me, I try to use
empathy as much as possible when
dealing with not only someone who
happens to be a different skin pig
ment than myself, but all people I
come into contact with.
I found your point troubling that I,
as a white male, should feel respon
sible for the actions of my forebcarers
(who took part in the cruel system of
slavery and setting up a system of
government that in your opinion is
based on suppressing minorities).
My question for you, Mr. Ryan, is
exactly how far do you go when you
say that I should stop being ashamed
of looking back at the past, and should
see what really happened? Does this
statement simply pertain to Ameri
cans with European descent? Should
Americans with North African roots
feel badly about how their ancestors
during the crusades forced Christian
soldiers into lives of slavery which
were as harsh as the ones Africans
had to deal with? Should all German
Amcricans feci a responsibility to Israel
because of the atrocities that their
ancestry committed against them
during World War II? If what you say
is true, shouldn’t certain African
Americans be bitter toward other
African-Americans because their
ancestors captured and sold Africans
into slavery (which is how the major
ity of Africans became slaves)?
My answer to these questions is
NO. Since it is obvious that you sup
port minority rights in any case, if
apartheid did come to an end in South
Africa, would you support the white
minority who, I’m sure, would be
come very oppressed for their rights
(or would they be getting what they
deserved, Mr. Ryan)?
Unfortunately, Mr. Ryan, all cul
tures have certain things that we, as
their descendants, cannot take pride
in. I personally am appalled by the
action my white European ancestors
committed in die past. But the simple
truth is that I can do nothing to change
them. So, instead of dwelling on the
past, I, as an American citizen, can
only do everything in my power to
sec that people, no matter what social
group they belong to, have an equal
chance to live in a society where they
are not judged by the color of their
skin, but by what is inside them.
Jack Miles
senior
history
Whites also have
faced prejudice
This letter is in response to Joseph
Ryan’s letter (DN, April 30).
I sec quite a few problems with
your letter. How many situations
exactly arc you familiar with?
To distract any possible criticisms
that I may be close-minded, I want to
tell you that I live in International
House and have shared many cultures
with other people.
I come from South Dakota and
have seen the reservations. I am not
happy about what I have seen at all.
OK, let the Native Americans use
peyote in their ceremonies. Where
does it stop after that? Would you see
it fit for me to use cocaine in my
Lutheran service? If so, why are drugs
(narcotics) illegal in the United States?
I feel that I deserve a say in every
thing because that is my right. If what
the Native Americans are doing af
fects my rights as an American, I
better have a say.
What would happen if we tried to
reverse things today and gave back
the Black Hills back to the Native
Americans? Would they take care of
it better than the reservations they
live on?
I am tired of people consistently
bringing up the past in trying to get
point across. My first ancestors
immigrated from Germany in the late
1800s. How dare you say I have had
an impact on the minorities of the
United States because I am white! I
do not sec having to pay for the sins of
my forefathers. It’s practically ab
surd, in fact, that they had anything to
do with slavery in the United States
when they came here after it was
abolished. Why should reverse dis
crimination be imposed on me be
cause of what has happened in the
past? Discrimination should not be
allowed on any basis!
The minorities have their faults
also. They tend to stereotype all whites
as one background. Wrong. We all
have come from different areas of the
world with different views. Every white
has not had a part in the subjugation
of the minorities. Do blacks actually
want more integration with whites?
No, many blacks associate with mainly
blacks. How long would a black family
remain in a predominantly white neigh
borhood? Chances are. not very long
because they come from different
backgrounds. Nothing ever has been
handed to me because I am white. I
have worked since I was a sophomore
in high school. I have earned my
student status completely. I had to
borrow almost $5,000 to be able to go
to college this year because I am a
middle-class white. Believe me, preju
dice exists on both sides of the slick.
The past should not be forgotten,
however. We must take a look and
then carry on. To dwell on the past
does no one any good. To live in
harmony, all people must change their
attitudes, not their heritage or past.
We change for the better if we look at
both sides, and that means also look
ing at our own mistakes and correct
ing them.
Whites need not be punished for
what has happened. De-humaniza
tions of people occurs globally. It is
always easy to focus on a group’s
faults. It is difficult to look at their
accomplishments, though.
To achieve a good relationship
between all people, we must live a
global life, and that means recogniz
ing everyone’s lifestyle. We can change
things, if we all work together.
Brian Oltmanns
freshman
international business
Equal coverage
irritates alumnus
As an alumnus, I am more than fed
up with the time, space and attention
which you and your colleagues from
coast to coast have been giving to
wards fulfilling the desires and aug
menting the publicity campaign
through which some homosexuals
continue to attempt to legitimate their
deviant behavior and hoodwink the
public in support of that objective.
In fairness, it must be admitted
that they do have some rights as
members of a minority group. In
particular, they should be allowed the
same rights as members of minority
groups such as kleptomaniacs, pyro
maniacs, homicidal maniacs and those
who practice bestiality.
A bit of research will also reveal
several other facts about homosexu
als: (1) that the latest statistical re
ports continue to show that they lead
all other groups in zealously contrib
uting to die spread of AIDS; and (2)
that in over half of the United States,
sodomy is still a form of criminal
activity as well as the most effective
means of spreading AIDS.
George P. Dooley
Lincoln
class of 1940
Appreciate social,
cultural variances
There have not been any incidents
on campus lately in reference to any
physical violence towards homosexu
als, but that does not mean that the
problem has vanished. In fact, the
absence of any mention of the subject
scares me. The lack of acknowledge
ment that the problem is still around
demonstrates that, once again, the
public prefers the unpleasant things
in life to be swept under the carpet
where guests cannot see it.
We, as a society, overlook racial
slurs, unkind homosexual comments,
and many other slams on those who
are different than us Why must we
condone these vile activities by ig
noring their existence or saying that it
is just a little bit of harmless fun? Do
we really believe that harassing oth
ers is an OK thing to do? If we do,
then I am ashamed of the place I call
home.
Minorities, whether they are eth
nic or social minorities, arc not fright
ening creatures that should be poked
fun at. What needs to be done in
volves education -- education of those
who are frightened of the cultural
differences that do exist. Although a
person may act or do “weird” things,
he or she is still a person with feeling
and dreams.
Do the world a favor and take the
ti me to learn about the other people in
the world.
Sonja Kapoun
freshman
athletic training
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