Reader supports affirmative action

To the editor:

In the affirmative action editorial, the writer used Dr. King ‘s famous “I have a dream” speech to justify striking down the University of Michigan’s admissions criteria, which uses race as one of the many factors in their decision making process.

While mentioning that Dr. King hoped to have a society “where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character,” the writer failed to include Dr. King’s actual opinion on affirmative action. The very same year Dr. King made that inspiring speech he also wrote a book called “Why We Can’t Wait,” where he clearly stated his stance on the “issue of compensatory treatment.” Dr. King wrote, “They think that it’s enough to bring somebody to the start of a line 300 years later in a race and let them go. That may sound reasonable, but it’s unrealistic.” Yes that is right, the overused, misinterpreted, and incorrect, justification used by affirmative action opponents that Martin Luther King Jr. opposed affirmative action is dead wrong. Please, I beg of you, do your research on the issue before participating in such a controversial debate. You could have at least done the research, considering it is Martin Luther King Jr. week!

Ankit A. DesaiClass of 2006

In search of dedicated fans on Main Line

To the editor:

This letter is for all of you who don’t care, have never cared or stopped caring about Villanova sports over the last couple of years. Basketball is supposed to be one of the most important things on this campus, yet I would bet most students can’t even name the team’s starting five. For those of you who don’t go to games, or don’t pay attention while you are at the games, we have a pretty good team this year. Besides the heartbreaker to UConn over the weekend, we have a legitimate chance at making the NCAA Tournament. That’s right, the four-letter tournament.

However, we as fans need to step up. Aren’t we supposed to be proud of who we are? Or should we sit like the alumni and say nothing? Yeah, some chants and cheers break out from the students once in a while, but on the whole, we have really weak fans. I am sorry to say that, but we do. And there is no good reason for it. I have a friend at Penn who asked me to go to the Penn-St. Joe’s games last weekend. It was, despite being St. Joe’s and Penn, refreshing to see two student sections that actually cared about their respective team. Both sections had signs and chants and watching the two groups go at each other was even better than watching the game, which was pretty bad.

The Wildcats have a chance to be a special team. We are currently second in the Big East East Division, and with no team other than UConn to really beat in the division, we could make a run at the Tournament title, providing we can upset Pitt and make the NCAA. This week will be a big one for the Wildcats. With what should be a pushover game against West Virginia on Saturday, the ‘Cats can gear up for the Hawks from down the road on Monday. They most likely, as painful as it is to say, will be playing in March, and we need to beat them to prove how good we are. We need students to be more supportive. We need them to be louder at the games. If you go to games, don’t just go to be seen in some new clothes. Go to support your fellow students. This could be a great year for Villanova hoops, and it will be that much better if we all join in the fun.

Joe HathawayClass of 2003