E. Alex Jung
E. Alex Jung has been involved in numerous ways during his four years at Columbia. Jung served as editor of the Ad-Hoc magazine, worked as a student advisor on the Student Governing Board, and was a leader in the 2006 SHOCC demonstrations. Jung has also developed a close personal relationship with Jewelnel Davis, Columbia University Chaplain, while working as a Chaplain's Associate.
Jung writes columns for the Spec. He is known for expressing viewpoints perceived by many as "radical"
In a Spectator column on April 26th, 2007, after suggesting that all too often "the responsibility [for facilitating dialogue] falls on marginalized people for not 'reaching out" or being too 'confrontational'", Jung rhetorically offered to "dance for [readers of the Columbia Daily Spectator] kabuki-like with chopsticks in [his] hair".
Views on race
Jung believes we live in a "system of whiteness". He believes that some white people, including some of his closest friends, are anti-racist lovers of justice. However, he believes that whites as a group are racist haters of justice.[1]
He believes that white people, as a generalization, are unaware of their supposed privilege[2] and resistant to discussing race issues[3].
Furthermore, Jung believes that the Core Curriculum focuses excessively on the ideas and works of white men.[4]
References
- ↑ "To turn an oft-heard phrase around, some of my closest friends are white. They are anti-racist lovers of justice, wholly non-representative of their group."
- ↑ "It's a generalization, of course, but not a superfluous one to state that white people at Columbia (not only of course) never think about the conditions of their privilege."
- ↑ "Race is not an issue for most white people quite simply because they don't feel its weight. When a critique of white privilege alights on their shoulders, white people quickly cry reverse racism."
- ↑ "Du Bois writes about the deluded Western belief that 'every great thought the world ever knew was a white man's thought.' What better subtitle for the Core Curriculum?"
