Educators of Reddit: Do you think the response, both institutional and communal, over the Paige Shoemaker incident over at KSU has been excessive?

On some levels, this ugly incident is more tabloid than news worthy. And it seems to me that it is feeding and exacerbating absolutely the wrong kind of attention. I'm not saying what those two girls did was right or defend-able. But let's face it, despite the fact these two are young adults, some who are in college are still hardly more than just kids - and kids mess up sometimes. Are we going to crucify everyone for doing and/or saying dumb things? If so, then let he (or she) with no sin...

In another day and age, boorish stunts like this will have attracted at most a few eye-rolls and maybe some mutterings of "stupid ditzs" or "dumb blondes" under their hypocritical breath. Then the more mature among us would be happy to concern ourselves with things more important than a crass joke made in bad taste by a pair who has scarcely begun to live a life yet of consequence.

But instead, it seems to me these girls are not even being given the chance to learn from their mistakes. In fact, they are now forced to bear the brunt of an entire society's rage over the collective cultural influences of people and forces who don't even know and probably wouldn't have otherwise cared about them. Last I heard, KSU removed the one girl who had been a student and her former sorority disowned her.

This confounds me. What do we specifically fault these two girls for that we have been negligent in calling out and condemning from a multitude of sources and outlets of expression? How many offensive t-shirts and jackets, be they racist, sexist, or just plain insensitive, have you seen worn in public but have said nothing? Why do we "privilege" some people to use the "N" word but not others? And why such sensitivity over the "N" word? Would any use of terms like "Wetbacks", "Gook/Chinaman", "Jap", whatever, have elicited the same outrage? Less you actually take the bait on that rhetorical question, should we really condone as civil/appropriate such d!ckwaving contests over which ethnicity has been oppressed more and deserve more dignity?

I pose these questions to this sub because the incident occurred at an institute of learning. And I question why the collective response of the education establishment has failed those who arguably need it the most. No doubt the fierce response beyond the campus is more than sufficient to convey how wrong what they did was. But what KSU did in bowing to PC pressure by removing Ms. Shoemaker as a student was an act of institutional self-interest that completely ignored her potential for redemption and growth from this incident. The parallels to "zero tolerance" policies for younger pre-college students are unmistakable. The truly courageous and admirable thing for KSU to have done would be to take the bulls by the horn and, as an institution, openly question, encourage scrutiny & discussion, of the cultural forces and influences that fostered an environment where countless young (as well as old) people hold such attitudes. Instead of a genuine attempt to illuminate and solve the problem at hand, KSU's action instead strikes me as simply sweeping the mess under the rug.

Before assumptions are made about me, the OP, let me make clear that I am non-white and have experienced my share of people, both strangers and friends, both in jest and otherwise, make tasteless jokes/comments/actions that make light of my unmistakable Asian roots. Let me also again make clear I have no intention of getting into a fight about which race is more justified in being upset or insulted when such things happen. I want to learn how we can move beyond this frankly reactionary and unproductive attitude I currently see and bring about a more palatable resolution to such incidents in the future.

Submitted September 22, 2016 at 12:30AM by MiserableFungi http://ift.tt/2dcHRzi