Christina Jenq '04

March 18, 2001

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Facts Were Wrong

To the editors:

Justin G. Fong's recent endpaper had absolutely no place in The Harvard Crimson, and I am shocked and amazingly disappointed that The Crimson would publish such a destructive and parochial piece.

Fong captures the worst stereotypes of Asians (the meek male, the erotic female), which are neither correct, interesting or novel. It adds absolutely nothing to the discussion. Fong does complete disservice to multiculturalism. If his point is against self-segregation, he could write a more balanced piece without much effort. There are more Asian students at Harvard who assimilate into the larger community than those who do not, and the tendency to identify with one's own ethnic group holds true for every single ethnic group, including Caucasians, African-Americans, Hispanics, Russians, Jews and Arabs. What's wrong with that?

I support the First Amendment, but I am shocked and disappointed in the poor judgment of The Crimson--the students' voice--to publish such vitriolic, inflammatory, unbalanced, uninteresting and unconstructive opinion. This is my fourth year at Harvard, but it is the first time I have felt ashamed to be a Harvard student.