A Time To Listen

Did you hear about this incident?

A prominent Columbia architecture professor punched a female university employee in the face at a Harlem bar during a heated argument about race relations, cops said yesterday.

Police busted Lionel McIntyre, 59, for assault yesterday after his bruised victim, Camille Davis, filed charges.

McIntyre and Davis, who works as a production manager in the school's theater department, are both regulars at Toast, a popular university bar on Broadway and 125th Street, sources said.

The professor, who is black, had been engaged in a fiery discussion about "white privilege" with Davis, who is white, and another male regular, who is also white, Friday night at 10:30 when fists started flying, patrons said.

The poor black university professor, who is being kept down by the white man, hits a white WOMAN because she disagreed with him on race relations. A man who thinks he has gotten a raw deal in life (because he is black) punches a female who works at his university, but probably does not have the same level of education nor does she have the same name recognition. I'll bet she probably voted for Obama.

But let's be careful not to jump to conclusions here. It may be that poor Lionel was having a bad day. I am sure race played no part in it whatsoever.

Already we are able to read the watering down of this act, by those who claim to agree with Lionel.

Call me crazy, but I understand how Lionel McIntyre felt. I would never punch out anyone from the frustration I've felt when dealing with white privilege, but then again, that is probably why I chose not to drink alcohol, since I am genuinely concerned about how I might react to the stinging pain of consistent racism. What is also true is that although some black scholars are afraid to admit it, many of us have felt incredibly angry and irritated by the arrogant nature of white privilege within academia. It's not that black scholars dislike their white colleagues, it's that many of us are tired of being thought of as second-class citizens.

Written by another black university professor, Boyce Watkins PhD.

No doubt, he too has been kept down by whitey, even though he has a doctorate. If he got it as a result of affirmative action, what the hell does he care? He got his, didn't he? If he worked his butt off for it like many others do and got nothing from government grants, what the hell does he care? He obviously didn't need help. Did he?

But more importantly, we are seeing a frightening pattern of behavior develop among black academics. First we had the Gates incident, now we see this one taken to a higher level; probably because the lady this bastard punched was not a cop, and was a woman not likely to fight back. What a brave man he is.

Dr. Watkins in his weak argument did make one statement that I agree with:

While no one needs to be punched, there certainly needs to be a conversation.

He's right, but with one caveat. A conversation has two components: Listening and talking. And might I remind these race baiting professors whose names appear in this post, the number of organs that are used for both -- show a 2-1 margin.

Lecturing is not a conversation and if that's all they are prepared to do, it will fail.

Calling a man a klansman is not a conversation and if that's all they are prepared to do, it will fail.

Punching a woman in the face is not a conversation either. But it is a statement. Are you out there women's groups?