Students drop Shinerama fundraiser for illness targeting Caucasians
2 Responses | Leave a Comment »
Hahahahaha, this is why I don’t consider myself a “liberal” (even though most of my positions are socially liberal). Stupid, stupid children. But then, it is Carleton U!
Students drop Shinerama fundraiser for illness targeting Caucasians
Last Updated: Tuesday, November 25, 2008 | 6:05 PM ET
Carleton University students have decided to pull out of a Canada-wide fundraiser that provides close to $1 million a year for cystic fibrosis research, given that the disease “has been recently revealed to only affect white people, and primarily men.”
The Carleton University Students Association voted Monday night overwhelmingly in favour of choosing a new charity to support during its orientation week in September,
The foundation funds research into cystic fibrosis, a fatal, genetic disease that is most common among Caucasians. It affects mainly the lungs and digestive system, causing a build-up of thick mucus that leads to infection and inflammation.
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.”
Nick Bergamini was the only student councillor to vote against the motion.
“I think that it’s political correctness gone horribly, horribly wrong,” he said. “They’re playing not just politics with this, but they’re playing racial politics, and I think it’s entirely inappropriate.”
The Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation called the student council’s decision “crushing.”
Disease affects people from India, Middle East
Nadine Imbleau Redman, spokeswoman for the foundation, said it’s also not true that the disease affects only white people. The disease does affect mainly Caucasians, but that includes Europeans, Indians and people from the Middle East, she said.
Debbie Foster, whose six-year-old daughter Vicky has cystic fibrosis, said she thinks the decision is narrow-minded.
“Who knows what will be affected next? Will it be that sickle cell anemia we shouldn’t fight against when it affects mainly African people?”
Brittany Smyth, president of the Carleton University’s student council, said she is trying to get in touch with the cystic fibrosis foundation because she doesn’t want the group to think Carleton students are switching charities for the wrong reason. She said the clause about cystic fibrosis being a white man’s disease was not the determining factor in Monday night’s vote, but for now students are sticking to the decision and looking for a different cause to support next fall.
Student leaders at the University of Ottawa said they will continue supporting Shinerama.
As part of Shinerama, students across the country shine shoes, wash cars and hold other activities in September that have raised $18.5 million for the foundation since 1964 and pulled in $985,638 in 2007 alone.
Leave a Comment »
Share
Entries (RSS)
Xian
1:34 pm | Nov 26, 2008It’s a terrible framing, but the reactions are at least as dumb. Cystic fibrosis has foundations with $150 million+ in revenue. How much do sickle cell charities have?
I think it’s dangerous to selectively critique people’s charitable choices. So I agree the framing sucked, but I think people can choose what they want to support.
MadeInTaiwan
3:25 pm | Dec 23, 2008This is where the ideal racial-blindness is beneficial. I’ll admit that I’m not as fond of white men as I should, but I would donate to this find-raiser regardless because it’s PEOPLE that they’re trying to save. Just because they’re white, doesn’t mean it’s acceptable for them to die of lung inflammation. Personally, not donating to this fund-raiser means three things:
1. “I don’t care”
2. “I don’t have enough money”
3. “They’re white, so what…”