Letters to the Editor: UW School Loses Credibility

School Loses Credibility Wisconsin State Journal :: SPECTRUM :: F2 Thursday, March 3, 2005 "Law schools are asked to accept discrimination" is the headline for Michael Rooke-Ley's essay against military recruiters on campus. Our university and law school (as well as most of the members of FAIR) have been discriminating against select races and genders for years -- at the direction of the U.S. government. They have no qualms about this kind of discrimination, only against allowing military recruiters access to campuses. Two examples: Title IX, though not intended to establish quotas for female and male athletes at universities when it was written, has been twisted so it is rigidly interpreted in exactly that manner. Do you recall a few years ago when UW-Madison dumped men's baseball, volleyball and several other men's sports and added several women's sports so they could comply with the Title IX quotas deadline? The men in the targeted sports were blatantly discriminated against so UW could keep its funding, legal status and sports teams in line with the requirements. I don't recall the law school professors trying to stop the discrimination then. Second, the university and law school discriminate in the selection of students they will accept. Grades, class rank, SAT scores, letters of recommendation, special talents and race are used to determine prospective students. Racial preference, euphemistically renamed "affirmative action," is used to encourage students with lower grades, rank, etc., to apply. Even here, one's specific race has to be defined so as to discriminate against high-achieving Asians or whichever group is considered to have "too much advantage." When we see these examples of discrimination abolished by the law school and the university, and a return to merit-based admissions and common sense sports programs, their credibility will be enhanced enough to listen to their reasons for wanting to ban military recruiters. -- William Richardson, Madison