The mailbox

Defining 'Diversity'

Your magazine is excellent, but the uncritical use of the words "diversity" and "minorities" in the article "Searching for greater diversity" (October 2002) is disappointing.

Diversity is a good thing. But the word "diversity" is frequently used by academics to mean "increased African-American representation," which is different from, and often more important than, diversity. TowerView reports that Duke's Board of Trustees has 37 voting members, 4 of whom are African Americans. If a "diversity" fanatic replaced the African-American members with a Kurd, a Kazakh, a Maori and a Malay ("minorities" all), the new Board would be less representative of Duke, but more diverse.

In America the term "minorities" usually refers to African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans and Asian Americans. The last of these groups is sometimes left off the list, because on average its members have been more successful. This makes no sense, since a "minority" is simply a group that comprises less than half of the population.

The words "diversity" and "minorities" are often hopelessly imprecise. However, my primary objection to the common use of the words "diversity" and "minorities" is not their imprecision, but their moral neutrality. Our nation's racial hypocrisy--the betrayal of American ideals inherent in the brutal oppression of African Americans--was the most important moral issue in American history. The struggle to end that oppression, which finally succeeded fewer than 40 years ago, is our nation's greatest moral triumph. African Americans are more than mere members of a "minority group," and African-American advancement is not a matter of "diversity;" it is a matter of justice.

America has made good progress toward ethnic equality and ethnic amity, but I would argue that the academic elite's current attitudes are more likely to hinder than to further that progress. For now, I will merely suggest that "diversity" enthusiasts and "minority" advocates think about what they really mean.

Arjun Bamzai

Durham, N.C.