Columbia University Segregates Graduations
Allegedly, Ivy League institutions are home to the smartest people in the world. A new graduation policy at Columbia University almost certainly negates that statement. Columbia University is hosting several separate graduation ceremonies this year for students who identify as Black, Latinx, LGBT, Asian, Native American or first-generation/low income. Columbia calls these events “Multicultural Graduation Celebrations.” Actually, these divisive and exclusionary exercises in segregation and identity politics are moronic.
This policy doesn’t encourage diversity and inclusion. It actually promotes segregation. Allowing people of different backgrounds to come together to celebrate a shared milestone builds bonds, creates community and forges potentially life-long relationships. Separating people by the color of their skin, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status or country of origin creates homogenous silos. When you are only surrounded by people who are exactly like you, you gain no diversity and lack perspective. Moreover, graduation is an occasion to be celebrated with friends. If a graduate has a friend of a different group, they won’t be graduating together. It is sad to think they won’t experience this accomlishment together.
Beyond being sad, this is ludicrous. If you are less financially secure than your friends, what will you do? Head on over to the graduation for “poor” folks? Yeah, that’s a great way to feel on graduation day. Alone, ashamed and isolated. God forbid you are half black and half Asian; where do you go? How about being gay and black? You get the idea. It’s just silly.
As one recent Columbia grad told me, “The irony is that my class was insanely diverse and multicultural. That’s what made it so interesting. We learned from each other’s unique experiences. We don’t need separate graduations to segregate and enhance our differences.”
Life is not like college. We have to assimilate with people who are nothing like us. We have to work with people of various backgrounds. Corporations don’t segregate themselves, so why should colleges? Columbia is coddling students by keeping them in segregated silos. Forget the identity politics. Let’s create a group of people who identify as graduates and productive members of the workforce.
