Mighty Whitey sez you can't fight racism without humor

Because satire is our only effective weapon against the subtle, "respectable," upper middle-class racism, we cannot afford to be indulgent of people who are tone-deaf to satire, even though there will always be such people in this country. The Pillory 's "Mighty Whitey" not only is hilarious, it is the only attempt I have ever seen to ridicule the smug, genteel racism which is common on this campus. The satire does not "fail" simply by failing to please everyone. Its intent is simply obvious, unless one is so sheltered as never to have heard of the stereotypes it exposes.

Racist attitudes which whites still get away with include: the notion that blacks are suitable objects of fear as long as they are referred to by such euphemisms as "the underclass," "urban youths," or "ghetto crime"; that they are incompatible nuisances who will "take over" suburban utopias unless they are zoned out of them; and that they are childlike, helpless victims who can succeed only in sports, entertainment and crime. Here at the William and Mary Law School, there are even students (Democrats, I might add) who say that emancipation was a bad idea and that the wrong side won the civil war. Few of the people with these attitudes see themselves as racists.

Thus there is plenty of real racism to denounce around here. But you cannot oppose a subtle, entrenched evil with mere symbolic gestures and earnest crusades for "education" against "ignorance," divisiveness, and "insensitivity." If you care about uprooting racism, you must dare to accost it in its genteel and liberal disguises. You must be willing to describe it, understand it, and acknowledge how pervasive it is. I only know two ways to do this: either through humor, or in lengthy, complex discourses which only the converted will listen to.

While most comments from students on both sides seem sincere and often evenhanded, the administration has panicked and gone out on a limb to placate the most vocal critics, regardless of the effect on others. One dean took the rather daring step of calling the cartoon "racist," without knowing the cartoonist's race or motives.

I must concede that the Pillory 's critics are right about one thing. Virginia's Statute for Religious Freedom provides that it is "impious presumption," "sinful and tyrannical" to force people to fund opinions they disagree with. Under this law, a state school may not force students or taxpayers to fund the Pillory or the Black Student Organization.