At Syracuse University, Apparently The Snowflakes Are In Charge
First, a Syracuse University professor is on the ropes because on a class syllabus he reportedly wrote “Wuhan Flu” and Chinese Communist Party Flu.” https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/syracuse-students-speak-out-over-professor-s-chinese-communist-party-flu-notes/ar-BB18z4C1?ocid=msedgdhp
“The derogatory language used by a professor on his course syllabus is damaging to the learning environment for our students and offensive to Chinese, international and Asian-Americans everywhere who have experienced hate speech, rhetoric and actions since the pandemic began,” said a joint statement from Karin Ruhlandt, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and John Liu, the university’s interim vice chancellor and provost.
“A lot of students are uncomfortable with the decision to place Zubieta on administrative leave. We expected him to be fired,” said a sophomore who is an organizer for #NotAgainSU and (unsurprisingly) asked not to be identified.
Graduate student Taylor Krzeminski, who is not even in this fellow’s class, saw a screenshot of the syllabus on The Tab Syracuse, “which documents student and campus life through memes, and decided to call him out. ‘It’s not safe for students to be in a classroom with a professor who thinks their ethnicity should be blamed for a pandemic,’ she said. ‘I agree he should be on leave but the investigation better be quick because to me it’s incredibly straight-forward. He used political and racist language in a chemistry class.”
One student, again not in the class, said “‘There is no need for an investigation if there is proof. It went viral, so the evidence is there,’ she said. ‘These stereotypes and biases that are incorporated in the class by faculty will allow for unsafe spaces for students.'”
Well, last we checked this corona virus started in Wuhan, China, so calling it the Wuhan Flu would appear to be fair game. Chinese Communist Party Flu, well, even if that is a little iffier, which we don’t think it is, so what? There certainly is plenty of evidence that the CCP authorities concealed the seriousness of the virus to the detriment of the rest of the world. Nevertheless, to suggest that just using the words has somehow created an unsafe environment for students is classic snowflake ideology in which any hurt feeling, no matter how ludicrous and idiosyncratic, has to be validated and supported, even if it costs the reputation and livelihood of someone who otherwise has led an exemplary life. This foolishness has got to stop.
Not To Be Outdone, “Blackflakes” Rule At The University Of Southern California
Second, this time at USC, a Communications Professor has been placed on leave after using a Chinese word that apparently sounds something like the word “nigger.” https://www.nationalreview.com/news/usc-communications-professor-placed-on-leave-after-using-chinese-word-that-sounds-like-racial-slur/ (Yes, we’re going to use the actual word, not this “n-word” crap.)
According to the National Review article, “Greg Patton, a professor at the university’s Marshall School of Business, was giving a lecture about the use of ‘filler words’ in speech during a recent online class when he used the word in question, saying, ““’If you have a lot of ‘ums and errs,’ this is culturally specific, so based on your native language. Like in China, the common word is ‘that, that, that.’ So in China it might be ‘nèi ge, nèi ge, nèi ge.’”
This, of course, sent the campus into an uproar – this is in the People’s Republic of California after all. “A group of black MBA candidates threatened to drop his class rather than ‘endure the emotional exhaustion of carrying on with an instructor that disregards cultural diversity and sensitivities’ following the instructor’s use, while teaching, of a Chinese word that sounds like a racial slur.” https://www.nationalreview.com/news/usc-professor-placed-on-leave-after-black-students-complained-his-pronunciation-of-a-chinese-word-affected-their-mental-health/
According to this article:
“Our mental health has been affected,” the group continued. “It is an uneasy feeling allowing him to have the power over our grades. We would rather not take his course than to endure the emotional exhaustion of carrying on with an instructor that disregards cultural diversity and sensitivities and by extension creates an unwelcome environment for us Black students.”
The students added that the incident “has impacted our ability to focus adequately on our studies.”
“’No matter what way you look at this, the word was said multiple times today in three different instances and has deeply affected us. In light of the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and the recent and continued collective protests and social awakening across the nation, we cannot let this stand,’ the group concluded, before calling for an immediate remedy to the situation.” Presumably that “remedy” is to cancel Professor Patton.
Of course, USC has now stepped in and rather than support a professor doing his or her job, it has apologized and is falling all over itself “offering supportive measures to any student, faculty, or staff member who requests assistance,’ the statement added, saying the school is ‘committed to building a culture of respect and dignity where all members of our community can feel safe, supported, and can thrive.'”
“According to a brief bio on the school’s website, Patton is ‘an expert in communication, interpersonal and leadership effectiveness’ who has received ‘numerous teaching awards, been ranked as one of the top teaching faculty at USC and helped USC Marshall achieve numerous #1 worldwide rankings for Communication and Leadership skill development.’”
This group of snowflakes (or “blackflakes” in this case) certainly don’t sound ready for the real world when they graduate. The “emotional exhaustion of carrying on with” this teacher’s class so bad that they can’t “focus adequately on our studies” and which creates an “unwelcome environment” for a bunch of black MBA wannabes? That MBA program is what ought to be cancelled, not Professor Patton.