A battle over the notion of reverse racism in student politics is unfolding at Dalhousie University.
Student union member Masuma Khan is now facing discipline from the university after calls to remove her from her elected position over comments posted on Facebook in the lead up to Canada 150.
In the social media post, Khan, a Muslim woman of colour, called on the university to stand with its Indigenous students by cancelling any celebrations planned to mark the date. She also shot back at those who had criticized Dal’s student union for adopting a motion to opt out of any potential Canada 150 events on campus.
“At this point…f*** you all,” Khan wrote, along with “#whitefragilitycankissmyass.”
The university is alleging Khan breached the student code of conduct in her comments.
“No student shall engage in unwelcome or persistent conduct that the student knows, or ought to reasonably know, would cause another person to feel demeaned, intimidated, or harassed,” reads the handbook on student behaviour.
Fellow student union member Mary MacDonald put forward a motion at a DSU meeting in late September seeking Khan’s removal from council, along with her $32,000 honourarium. MacDonald said Khan’s letter had elements of “vulgarity and childishness” and that her post showed “defiance and contempt for the perspective of others.” Should Khan go unpunished, MacDonald warned, she’ll only continue to speak out in this way.
For her part, Khan admits she could have toned down the language in her post—which she says she was pressured to delete—but asks, why the onus should be on her.
“Why do I constantly have to validate my right to free speech?” questions Khan.
MacDonald’s motion failed in September, but Khan isn’t yet in the clear.
Her Facebook post garnered national press from the likes of prominent columnist Christie Blatchford, who bemoaned Khan’s “Canada shaming” in the National Post. Formal complaints were filed with the university and an investigation by the vice provost of student studies, Arig Al-Shaibah, has been kicked up to the Senate Discipline Committee for a hearing later this fall.
This formal complaint process from people upset about her comments on “white fragility” pinpoints a fundamental failure of understanding, Khan says.
“Racism doesn’t work in the reverse,” she declares, leading her to another question:
“Who exactly has the power in these systems?”
Most cases handled by the Discipline Committee involve allegations of plagiarism and the like.
Khan says the Senate’s ruling in her case will reveal a lot about Dalhousie as an institution.
“For me, it will show what the university thinks. What’s the panel gonna look like? If it’s all-white deciding whether this is ‘reverse racism,’ that is an issue.”
Meanwhile, Khan says the question of her conduct is distracting from the very issue she was trying to highlight from the start.
“Why aren’t we focusing on Indigenous issues? Why are we still talking about me?”
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This article appears in Oct 19-25, 2017.
Reverse racism doesnt work?!? Let me get this right, its okay for you to be racist against white people but not okay for people to be racist against you?!
Racism is racism regardless of who its directed at.
Solidarity with Masuma Asad Khan.
This is exactly what white fragility looks like, just a bunch of white people getting pissed off for being called out. There needs to be more people like Masuma Khan.
Holding a disciplinary hearing over this just proves her point that white people are fragile. Reverse racism is not a thing because white people are not discriminated against on the basis of their skin colour. Common Dal, only one of the mostly (all? who knows because they never told us who they were) white male dentistry students who made misogynistic comments about their female classmates faced a disciplinary hearing, and he was the one who brought it to the female classmates’ attention. Your colonial roots are showing, Dal, and they’re entrenched in racism and sexism. Khan is a stronger person than any of these white egos and will continue to rise because of it. – A white person.
The main problem the comment is racist, she is trying to use the White people card again? You wonder why the most people are sick of SJW’s. Also if she trying to use that she is Arab, it is no secret the Arab World is very racist. This is racism and Dal Student Union is a joke. They do not speak for 99% of the student body with their views.
@Mr Lovah Lovah
See most people don’t care what SJW’s think, bashing white people to defend someone else racism? I wonder how Dal Student Unions leaders would work in the real world with comments like this? They would never be voted into any real Public Office with views like this. I wonder why most people are just sick of this line. Please go to another university then if you view Dal’s: “Your colonial roots are showing, Dal, and they’re entrenched in racism and sexism.” She made a racist comment and most people in the real world are sick and tired of this. I am guessing you live in the 1950s still or think it is the 1950s. It is 2017 and most people are sick of SJW’s crying over things like this and not realizing what planet they are currently living on. Get with the real world, and sad some are really defending racist rants like Masuma Khan’s and blaming white people. I think some and most of the joke of a Dal Student Union lives in another century and are to into themselves too much. Who cares what race you are these days, I know, you live in 1950s, not Canada 2017.
@Hannah Hawkins
“This is exactly what white fragility looks like, just a bunch of white people getting pissed off for being called out. There needs to be more people like Masuma Khan.”
—
So more people given reason for a racist comment while blaming white people? People in the real world, don’t care about race anymore. All we need are more SWJ’s given reasons for racist comments from people like Masuma Khan and then crying over how every white person is racist. We the human race, do not buy this anymore.