LETTER: Some do need a little extra help

Editor,

I was a little concerned about the issues and point of view expressed in a recent column related to diversity and minorities. I would like to take this opportunity to share my views on the same.

First of all, I do not think that diversity is based just on your skin color. We are all diverse in our own ways, habits, foods, attires, cultures, sexual preferences, affiliations, point of views et cetera, and that was a point that was conveyed and celebrated through the activities during Diversity Week.

Secondly, sometimes it does help in giving some body who is less-privileged a little boost to be on par with people who have access to better privileges. For instance, take an inner city kid attending a public school and a kid from a more affluent family attending a private school. The latter is more likely to have better accessibility to latest computers, well-equipped laboratories, libraries, and other facilities than the former. In such cases, Affirmative Action does help. Last week, the Native American Student Council hosted Mr. Larry Echohawk, a former Attorney-General of Idaho, who said that he and his siblings were able to get the education that they have because of Affirmative Action.

Finally, in the game of politics, politicians across the board – leftists, rightists, liberals, conservatives, you name them – may have their own agendas in fighting and supporting different causes, bills and amendments. We cannot, however, discount the genuine care and concern that some may have for the welfare and well-being of people, even if that group of politicians is a very small minority.

To end I would like to share a quote from a book that I recently read. I have shared it with some and would like to share it with some more. “Rights are a thing of men. God is a God of love. You do not love your neighbor by giving him a right. When you give a man a right, it is too easy to forget to love him. But if you had loved him to begin with, the question of right would never have risen.” -Stephen L. Carter, The Emperor of Ocean Park (fiction)

Paul Joseph