Angry in the Great White North

Carleton University is in the middle of a firestorm.  Stupid students have embarrassed the institution by suggesting that since cystic fibrosis kills mostly white males, it's a disease that doesn't need a cure:

Students at an Ottawa university are pulling out of a Canada-wide fundraiser that provides close to $1 million a year for cystic fibrosis research and treatment, arguing that the disease "has been recently revealed to only affect white people, and primarily men" — something experts say is untrue.

The Carleton University Students Association voted Monday night overwhelmingly in favour of choosing a new charity to support during its orientation week in September, in lieu of Shinerama, which raises money for the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

The student council motion stated that orientation week "strives to be inclusive" and "all orientees and volunteers should feel like their fundraising efforts will serve their diverse communities."

Here's the full text of the motion:

Motion to drop Shinerama fundraising campaign from Orientation Week

Whereas Orientation week strives to be inclusive as possible

Whereas all orientees and volunteers should feel like their fundraising efforts will serve their diverse communities

And whereas cystic fibrosis has been recently revealed to only affect white people, and primarily men

Be it further resolved that: The CUSA representatives on the incoming Orientation Supervisory Board work to select a new broad reaching charity for orientation week.

Fortunately, some semblance of sanity is prevailing:

The president of Carleton University says the language used by the school's student association to justify cancelling an annual cystic fibrosis fundraiser was "not appropriate" and said she has heard that the move will be reconsidered at a future meeting.

In a statement issued Wednesday, Roseann O'Reilly Runte said she personally regrets that the student council adopted the motion, which scrapped the Shinerama fundraiser claiming it benefits a disease that affects "white people and primarily men."

Even students were offended by this:

Journalism councillor Nick Bergamini said Wednesday he also hopes the move will be reconsidered at an upcoming meeting, because most students at the school are unhappy with what has transpired.

"This is not a black mark on Carleton, this is a black mark on the students' association," Bergamini told CTV.ca.

According to CTV Ottawa, students are organizing a protest for Thursday to denounce the CUSA decision.

Faced with the growing protest, the CUSA is raising the white flag, but offers only a half-apology:

Carleton University Students’ Association moves to reverse decision on Shinerama

Carleton University Students’ Association President Brittany Smyth has indicated that CUSA council will revisit the motion to change the orientation program charity from Shinerama.

“It has become clear that there is not an appetite at Carleton to change from Shinerama” said Ms.Smyth “The responsible thing to do is to reverse the decision.”

While the motion merely stated the students’ association would investigate switching to another charity, students have made it clear that they do not want the change.

"I both respect and admire the students’ commitment to the cause of raising funds for cystic fibrosis.” stated Ms.Smyth “I believe this issue has been blown out of proportion but the motion was never meant to imply that raising funds for Cystic Fibrosis research was not a worthwhile cause. I do apologize for the negative attention Carleton has received”.

Apology for the hurt done to people who suffer from cystic fibrosis?  No, of course not.  Just an apology for the negative attention.

In other words, the only thing she's sorry for is that Carleon looked bad.  No, that's not quite right.  She's sorry that people said bad things about Carleton.

Just much heat is Carleton taking for this?  Well, there are two versions of the press release.  The first version (26-Nov-08, 12:08pm) included the cell phone number of the CUSA President, Brittany Smith.  The second version (26-Nov-08, 13:31pm) did not.

Oh, and by the way, cystic fibrosis is not exclusively a disease that strikes white males.  South Asian people get it, Arabs get it, both genders get it -- you know, people who matter.

As we watch the CUSA beat a hasty retreat while mewling pathetically that it did nothing wrong and that it's the victim in all this ("blown out of proportion" -- so we're the ones making the mistake here?), it occurs to me that under slightly different circumstances, people would be demanding resignations.  Lucky for the CUSA and Brittany Smith that us white males aren't organized around professional victimization groups dedicated to hounding people down who offend our sensibilities.  Maybe the CUSA and Brittany Smith will remember that the next time they target someone for saying something deemed offensive and even racist.  Not likely though.

Learning experience?  From Warren Kinsella:

So, it is my hope that the ill-informed kids at CUSA also learn from their experience – because that is what your university days are supposed to be all about. In politics, as in life, it is not making a mistake that matters so much. It is what you make of that mistake. That is what makes us better people, and the world around us better, too.

When the CUSA hurts a bunch of very sick people, and their families, and the people who have dedicated their lives to finding a cure to what ails them, and the people who work tirelessly to raise funds to keep those researchers working, and all the CUSA can do is apologize for the negative attention that Carleton got as a result of this stupidity, I think it's fair to say these kids have learned very little.  Or at least, as a parent, I would hope my kids would take away a very different lesson from a situation like this.