Letter to the Editor Expresses Concern Over Exclusion in Previous Issue
Issue date: 10/29/01 Section: Opinions
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Letter to the Editor:
In this latest issue of The Reporter, a special note of congratulations was given to those second-years who were married this summer and to those who were engaged. There were several members of the class left off of this list. While we appreciate the effort made to preface that the list may not be complete and the offer to publish those forgotten in the next issue, the problem is that to acknowledge the wonderful occasions of weddings and engagements by some of the members of the GSB community, while ignoring these same events in the lives of other GSB students is failing to acknowledge them as equal members of the GSB community.
The list published in the article included members of the GSB community more closely connected to what could be considered the GSB majority social culture. However, the GSB community contains many subsets of people and circles of friends that do not actively participate in the larger social activities of the GSB (FOAM, LPF etc.) . And while the highlights of their lives can still be published in the next issue, failing to acknowledge them up-front and alongside of these mentioned in this issue somewhat lowers these forgotten individuals to second-class citizens whose events are not as worthy to be equally recognized. Granted those forgotten may come from various sub-groups, however, the argument of exclusion still holds. What further disturbs us is the apparent lack of effort or interest taken to ensure that all the newly married or engaged members of the community received acknowledgement in the first place. A simple email out to the class would have given all members of the community the opportunity to be included. Similarly, had the author taken the time to ask other members of the reporter staff alone, many would have not been excluded.
Exclusion is not only achieved by an intentional act to exclude, but can also be accomplished just the same by the failure to include. Debra Meyerson’s course, Working with Differences, teaches that rooted in the fabric of social institutions and woven deeply into the basic structures and practices of organizations are a variety of processes that inhibit certain groups’ ability to participate fully, and therefore block the potential for learning. The point we are trying to make is that as managers and leaders in the business world to which we will return, as members of the GSB community, and as those responsible for “Serving the GSB Community” as is explicitly stated as the Reporter’s purpose, it is our responsibility to look critically at our structures and practices in order to remove the elements that further exclude.
Sincerely yours,
Maya McMillin
Michele Sconiers
Bea Thayaparan
In this latest issue of The Reporter, a special note of congratulations was given to those second-years who were married this summer and to those who were engaged. There were several members of the class left off of this list. While we appreciate the effort made to preface that the list may not be complete and the offer to publish those forgotten in the next issue, the problem is that to acknowledge the wonderful occasions of weddings and engagements by some of the members of the GSB community, while ignoring these same events in the lives of other GSB students is failing to acknowledge them as equal members of the GSB community.
The list published in the article included members of the GSB community more closely connected to what could be considered the GSB majority social culture. However, the GSB community contains many subsets of people and circles of friends that do not actively participate in the larger social activities of the GSB (FOAM, LPF etc.) . And while the highlights of their lives can still be published in the next issue, failing to acknowledge them up-front and alongside of these mentioned in this issue somewhat lowers these forgotten individuals to second-class citizens whose events are not as worthy to be equally recognized. Granted those forgotten may come from various sub-groups, however, the argument of exclusion still holds. What further disturbs us is the apparent lack of effort or interest taken to ensure that all the newly married or engaged members of the community received acknowledgement in the first place. A simple email out to the class would have given all members of the community the opportunity to be included. Similarly, had the author taken the time to ask other members of the reporter staff alone, many would have not been excluded.
Exclusion is not only achieved by an intentional act to exclude, but can also be accomplished just the same by the failure to include. Debra Meyerson’s course, Working with Differences, teaches that rooted in the fabric of social institutions and woven deeply into the basic structures and practices of organizations are a variety of processes that inhibit certain groups’ ability to participate fully, and therefore block the potential for learning. The point we are trying to make is that as managers and leaders in the business world to which we will return, as members of the GSB community, and as those responsible for “Serving the GSB Community” as is explicitly stated as the Reporter’s purpose, it is our responsibility to look critically at our structures and practices in order to remove the elements that further exclude.
Sincerely yours,
Maya McMillin
Michele Sconiers
Bea Thayaparan