The Future Is Now

It seems to me a terrible shame and a disgrace that at a University such as Harvard where a minority presence has just in the last 20 years begun to develop in number proportionate to Ine greater population, organizations like the Black Students Association should, instead of receiving support and encouragement, be subject encouragement be subject to unprovoked attacks, conduction and criticisms that question their very right to exist. Fortunately not referring to anything done or sanctioned by the University itself, but instead by one of its faculty. In a letter by Professor Martin Kilson on Monday, February 25, 1985, the Black Students Association was criticized as being overly "ethnocentric," "disoriented," and even "pathetic," and to what Mr. Kilson views as their lack of an appropriately "cosmopolitan" identify. Such an assertion seems to be completely oblivious to the reason that the Black Students Association was formed and why it has that name, or why for that matter, the Asian American Association, the American Indians at Harvard, RUS, and a large number of other students organizations have their names, including groups like the Republican Club and the H-R Christian Fellowship. All of these organizations represent groups that have specific interests and often unique needs, that need to be addressed in some coherent fashion. And this is not the only point Mr. Kilson seemed to misunderstand when he blasted the BSA for not being "consompolitan" enough, because he also seems to think that the BSA is keeping student who were involved in it from pursuing other interests as as well, be they cosmopolitan is not. This simply not the case.

Attacking a Black student group for pursuing Black student issues is wrong or a number of reasons, but what struck me the most by the attack was that it came from one of the few Black tenured professors at Harvard indeed, it precisely his type of support that Black Students could use the most. But it seems he was completely against giving it. He even attacked the BSA for reaching out to Black alumni for support, right after he supported the right for Jewish students to reach out to their ethnic communities for the funds and resources to sustain such things as the Hillel House on Mt. Auburn St. Furthermore, Mr. Kilson stated that it was wrong "to ask others (Whites) to generate resources to sustain" Black parochial preferences, which would seem to indicate that he would support our reaching out to Black alumni for help. And then he changed his stance once again as he stated the BSA "would do much better for the Black poor by trying to persuade their White. Asian, and Hispanic Harvard Alumni to help America keep her promises to the Black poor." Another contradiction, for now we are supposed to take from the resources of White people.

Kilson also suggested that if we waited 20 years we would find our which students are likely to become relevant leaders within Black communities throughout this country, while he also implied that the BSA would definitely not provide any of them. But to say these things and to assume we will have to what 20 year to find out how true they are is to ignore history. Because all we really have to do is look 20 years in the past to discover that Blacks who had shown a concern and taken up a role in Black organizations 20 years ago, have become men like the Andrew Youngs, the Jesse Jacksons, and the Met Kings of today who were also very active in their student years-while those who sought not to involve themselves in the struggles of that period are still uninvolved today.

And for Mr. Kilson to even suggest that for one to become more effective in combating a problem such as Black poverty, one must seek after a cosmopolitan identify and environment, and keep away from ethnocentric issues (issues specifically pertaining to Black people) is ludicrous. In fact it would seem almost intuitive to say that the best leader of any group are likely to come from those who have shown the most interest and involvement in that group, no matter who that group is. This goes also for the Black poor, so I can only hope that Mr. Kilson's interest in the Black poor as more than an academic one and that he's actively involved in trying to help this particular group which he refers to so many times in his letter I would also suggest that if he is sincere in this interest, he should know that there are Black student groups or campus right now that do more than just talk about the needs of the Black poor, but are actually trying to do something to help. Groups like the Seymour Society, which runs a food program in Roxbury distributing free food to the needy, and ABRW, which provides college scholarships to Black women in Cambridge public high schools, and Academy Homes and Inter generate. Qutreach, which provide numerous from aid and support for innercity kids. So again, we will not have to wait 20 year find out which Blacks will become into and or act as leadership in Black munities that are peed. We have them right now.

Mr. Kilson's energies would in better spent if he were working to show type of support for Black students and organizations, instead of criticizing condemning in the way he has don his letter. He stated that 20 years down road, he would like to meet the leadership to see if his or their views been more successful. Well, if he concerned about Black students he need wait 20 years to come to a BSA meeting talk to us. The meetings occur once a most and he could probably even make it to the week; board meetings and talk BSA leadership even sooner. Why he has done so up to now is a serious is question in mind, but if he is sincere in his sincere in his concern should at least make the effort now. Alan Shaw   BSA President 1983

Attacking a Black student group for pursuing Black student issues is wrong or a number of reasons, but what struck me the most by the attack was that it came from one of the few Black tenured professors at Harvard indeed, it precisely his type of support that Black Students could use the most. But it seems he was completely against giving it. He even attacked the BSA for reaching out to Black alumni for support, right after he supported the right for Jewish students to reach out to their ethnic communities for the funds and resources to sustain such things as the Hillel House on Mt. Auburn St. Furthermore, Mr. Kilson stated that it was wrong "to ask others (Whites) to generate resources to sustain" Black parochial preferences, which would seem to indicate that he would support our reaching out to Black alumni for help. And then he changed his stance once again as he stated the BSA "would do much better for the Black poor by trying to persuade their White. Asian, and Hispanic Harvard Alumni to help America keep her promises to the Black poor." Another contradiction, for now we are supposed to take from the resources of White people.

Kilson also suggested that if we waited 20 years we would find our which students are likely to become relevant leaders within Black communities throughout this country, while he also implied that the BSA would definitely not provide any of them. But to say these things and to assume we will have to what 20 year to find out how true they are is to ignore history. Because all we really have to do is look 20 years in the past to discover that Blacks who had shown a concern and taken up a role in Black organizations 20 years ago, have become men like the Andrew Youngs, the Jesse Jacksons, and the Met Kings of today who were also very active in their student years-while those who sought not to involve themselves in the struggles of that period are still uninvolved today.

And for Mr. Kilson to even suggest that for one to become more effective in combating a problem such as Black poverty, one must seek after a cosmopolitan identify and environment, and keep away from ethnocentric issues (issues specifically pertaining to Black people) is ludicrous. In fact it would seem almost intuitive to say that the best leader of any group are likely to come from those who have shown the most interest and involvement in that group, no matter who that group is. This goes also for the Black poor, so I can only hope that Mr. Kilson's interest in the Black poor as more than an academic one and that he's actively involved in trying to help this particular group which he refers to so many times in his letter I would also suggest that if he is sincere in this interest, he should know that there are Black student groups or campus right now that do more than just talk about the needs of the Black poor, but are actually trying to do something to help. Groups like the Seymour Society, which runs a food program in Roxbury distributing free food to the needy, and ABRW, which provides college scholarships to Black women in Cambridge public high schools, and Academy Homes and Inter generate. Qutreach, which provide numerous from aid and support for innercity kids. So again, we will not have to wait 20 year find out which Blacks will become into and or act as leadership in Black munities that are peed. We have them right now.

Mr. Kilson's energies would in better spent if he were working to show type of support for Black students and organizations, instead of criticizing condemning in the way he has don his letter. He stated that 20 years down road, he would like to meet the leadership to see if his or their views been more successful. Well, if he concerned about Black students he need wait 20 years to come to a BSA meeting talk to us. The meetings occur once a most and he could probably even make it to the week; board meetings and talk BSA leadership even sooner. Why he has done so up to now is a serious is question in mind, but if he is sincere in his sincere in his concern should at least make the effort now. Alan Shaw   BSA President 1983

Kilson also suggested that if we waited 20 years we would find our which students are likely to become relevant leaders within Black communities throughout this country, while he also implied that the BSA would definitely not provide any of them. But to say these things and to assume we will have to what 20 year to find out how true they are is to ignore history. Because all we really have to do is look 20 years in the past to discover that Blacks who had shown a concern and taken up a role in Black organizations 20 years ago, have become men like the Andrew Youngs, the Jesse Jacksons, and the Met Kings of today who were also very active in their student years-while those who sought not to involve themselves in the struggles of that period are still uninvolved today.

And for Mr. Kilson to even suggest that for one to become more effective in combating a problem such as Black poverty, one must seek after a cosmopolitan identify and environment, and keep away from ethnocentric issues (issues specifically pertaining to Black people) is ludicrous. In fact it would seem almost intuitive to say that the best leader of any group are likely to come from those who have shown the most interest and involvement in that group, no matter who that group is. This goes also for the Black poor, so I can only hope that Mr. Kilson's interest in the Black poor as more than an academic one and that he's actively involved in trying to help this particular group which he refers to so many times in his letter I would also suggest that if he is sincere in this interest, he should know that there are Black student groups or campus right now that do more than just talk about the needs of the Black poor, but are actually trying to do something to help. Groups like the Seymour Society, which runs a food program in Roxbury distributing free food to the needy, and ABRW, which provides college scholarships to Black women in Cambridge public high schools, and Academy Homes and Inter generate. Qutreach, which provide numerous from aid and support for innercity kids. So again, we will not have to wait 20 year find out which Blacks will become into and or act as leadership in Black munities that are peed. We have them right now.

Mr. Kilson's energies would in better spent if he were working to show type of support for Black students and organizations, instead of criticizing condemning in the way he has don his letter. He stated that 20 years down road, he would like to meet the leadership to see if his or their views been more successful. Well, if he concerned about Black students he need wait 20 years to come to a BSA meeting talk to us. The meetings occur once a most and he could probably even make it to the week; board meetings and talk BSA leadership even sooner. Why he has done so up to now is a serious is question in mind, but if he is sincere in his sincere in his concern should at least make the effort now. Alan Shaw   BSA President 1983

Mr. Kilson's energies would in better spent if he were working to show type of support for Black students and organizations, instead of criticizing condemning in the way he has don his letter. He stated that 20 years down road, he would like to meet the leadership to see if his or their views been more successful. Well, if he concerned about Black students he need wait 20 years to come to a BSA meeting talk to us. The meetings occur once a most and he could probably even make it to the week; board meetings and talk BSA leadership even sooner. Why he has done so up to now is a serious is question in mind, but if he is sincere in his sincere in his concern should at least make the effort now. Alan Shaw   BSA President 1983