White and Asian Students Allegedly Excluded From Enrolling in New Course at Brown University
“Such actions are neither legally, nor morally, justified and we urge the university to reconsider its decision”
Progressives in higher education obsess over supposed systemic racism, then turn around and do something like this. And it happens again and again.
The New York Post reports:
Brown University ‘mindfulness’ course offered only to minority students
A new course at Brown University has sparked controversy after it was offered solely to minority students.
The teacher training class in mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) was recently made available only to students who identify as Black, Indigenous or Latino. Anyone who identifies as BIPOC, regardless of their age or whether or not they are a student at Brown, was allowed to enroll in the online class, which debuted in May.
The exclusion of white and Asian students raised the ire of one anonymous Brown student, who was turned away from the MBSR program because they don’t identify as BIPOC. In a May 13 complaint filed with the Foundation Against Intolerance & Racism (FAIR), a “civil rights and liberties organization,” the student stated that “Brown is offering a RACE-BASED teacher training program that is ONLY open to certain demographics (black, latino, indigenous).
The complaint continues: “This program will also offer grants to these students to help manage the cost of the program. Financial assistance is NOT being offered to members of other demographics who may not be able to afford the program either. (white & asian). This results in certain demographics being favored over others and is discriminatory. As a student of the program, I find myself being unable to continue my training with this institution as I refuse to support educational segregation based solely on skin color as it violates my core principles, values, and the Buddhist teachings that which this program is based on.”
The student calls the program, which is funded by a foundation grant and the university’s School of Public Health, “a return to educational segregation based on skin color.”
Bion Bartning, the president and founder of FAIR, called Brown’s course “discriminatory.”
“In a misguided effort, perhaps, to remedy past injustices, Brown University has decided to discriminate against students solely on the basis of skin color and ethnic background,” Bartning said. “Such actions are neither legally, nor morally, justified and we urge the university to reconsider its decision.”
*UPDATE* Comment from Eric B. Loucks, Director of the Mindfulness Center at Brown
The Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) teacher training program will be open to individuals who live in the United States regardless of race, color, or national or ethnic origin. Applications for the program will next open in August, and our promotional materials for this program will reflect its inclusive nature. Upon further review of our early promotional materials for the program, we realigned them to reflect the program’s inclusive nature while still meeting the goal of addressing the needs, life experiences, and priorities of marginalized communities. The intent is to reach future teachers who have a special interest in or history of personal engagement with the experiences of Black, Indigenous, and/or Latino/Latina/Latinx peoples and others who have been underrepresented in the mindfulness field. This is regardless of the participant’s race. This MBSR Teacher Training Program is an effort to widen the population of teachers and participants who have access to mindfulness training and are involved in research programs.
DONATE
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.
Comments
“In a misguided effort, perhaps, to remedy past injustices …”
Stop giving them so much credit. There are only two possible reasons for this kind of blatant discrimination:
1) Bigotry
2) Fear of the consequences of being known to not be bigoted.
No crackers need apply.
Is THAT why it’s called Brown University?
“Progressives,” who are really regressives, being Leftists are clearly insane. They say they want to eliminate racism, but how do they go about it, by instituting racist policies.
On a more rational note, doesn’t this violate the Civil Rights Act?
How does this square with the still-in-effect “benefits of diversity” language from SCOTUS? Or is that legally irrelevant because admission is not selective except for the test for BIPOCness?
Plot twist: it’s actually a remedial math course
Segregation is “in,” and equality is “out.”
Welcome to the Bizarro world of the leftists.
If they want segregation, give it to them. Good and hard.