BSA

To the Editors of the Crimson:

I was amazed when I picked up last Tuesday's Crimson (12/11/84) to find the omission of the most newsworthy story that day. The cries of anger and furor issued from the Black students were so forceful I would have expected them to reach the usually acute ears of Crimson editors. These Black students were appalled to find out that Benjamin L. Hooks the executive director of the National Association for the Advancement of colored People(NAACP), came to visit Harvard University and they were not welcome to participate in the event.

Mr. Hooks was invited by the Harvard Foundation for Race Relations, more specifically by Dr. S. Allen Counter, director, to participate in a black tie, invitation only dinner and presentation. Invited to this affair were several dozen Boston "dignitaries" several dozen Harvard deans and administrators and about 15 students. It would be petty for me to mention that the President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary and most of the executive board of the Black Students Association were not included on the guest list, as well as the entire board of the Afro-American Cultural Center and the entire steering committee of the Association of Black Radcliffe Women. To mention these unexplainable omissions would detract from the point that Dr. S. Coutner insulted all Black students and all Harvard students by hosting this exclusive event. Every student on this campus has to wonder how the spending of what must have been thousands of dollars to spoon feed steaks, rolls and fruit cocktails to primarily Boston residents and Harvard deans serves, in any way to improve race relations on this campus. Imprisoned behind closed doors, how can Mr. Hooks help educate the Harvard undergraduate who just last week at a local bar loudly exclaimed that he "hates niggers?"

Stuffed with french bread, how can Mr. Hooks help educate the Harvard undergraduate who drew derogatory from the South Side of Chicago who believes that Harvard University is just a place for the elite and the rich?

However, judging from an incident that occurred after the Hooks' dinner, it appears that it was never Dr. Counter's concern to address these questions. A group of Black students stood waiting in the foyer of Lehman Hall hoping to get a glimpse of Mr. Hooks before he was whisked to his limousine. Hooks spotted these students and went over to greet them warmly, causing a look of horror to cross Dr. Counter's face. Did he believe that the adornment of a black tie was necessary to give legitimacy to a Black student?

Since I understand that Dr. Counter plans on leaving the Foundation after this academic year, the purpose of this letter is not just to address the misjudgement of one man, but to point out a fundamental flaw in the structure of the organization. Namely, there are no students on the voting board of the Foundation. It is difficult to understand how this board can make decisions concerning race relations among undergraduates without a single undergraduate, Third World or White, in its body. Certainly, there are students who have selflessly helped coordinate several Foundation events, but those students do not have the power to veto policy or vote on grant allocation.

I believe the Foundation has incredible potential (judging from its budget alone) to make large strides towards addressing the all too often ignored question of racial tensions on this campus. Many well meaning students make insensitive blunders of speech and judgement out of ignorance, creating tensions and misperception. If students were to be given a significant role in the Foundation, they would have the danger of becoming the Harvard Foundation for Public Relations. Timothy A. Wilkins '86   President, Black Students Association