Would FAMU ever hire a white president? The impression given from Friday’s edition of the Tallahassee Democrat Opinion’s section, is no.
The issue featured Zing!-spicy opinions stated briefly and to the point, as defined by the Tallahassee Democrat. In another blow to FAMU administration, it stated, “So FAMU’s search for a president is going to be “inclusive,” eh? That’s refreshing. Watch and see how many white candidates make the cut.”
Indeed, FAMU is a Historically Black University, but does that prevent us from considering a qualified candidate simply because of their race?
True, we would be dealing out the same discrimination to whites that has been dealt to us for decades, and continues to be dealt now, yet, we run the risk of never fully reaching our potential as a university simply because we only consider the most qualified black candidates.
It would be nice to assume that we have evolved from the notion that discrimination is the only way to achieve success within one’s culture, however, the sad reality is that we haven’t.
We, as a culture, should look out for one another, but not if it means overlooking an ideal candidate simply because they happen to belong to another race. How would the students, faculty and Tallahassee community react to a white president? That, is a question that may never get an answer.
Stephanie Nickens for the Editorial Board.