In response to the October 4th article “Honor and responsibility” by Brian Daly, I feel that your comments are unfair to both Ryerson’s journalism program and its faculty.
Brian, this is the second article I have seen written by you claiming that action needs to be taken to get more minorities into journalism at Ryerson. Why do you feel that there is an injustice being done to your people? Are you not one of the editors at The Eyeopener for the second year in a row? Did you have any trouble getting into the program on academic merit? Have you not been treated the same as the rest of us during our four-year stay here? I think so.
It’s time for you to stop feeling like a martyr for your cause. Sure it’s a shame that there aren’t more visible minorities in the program and I can empathize with you, but I hardly think you “shoulder the burden of an entire community” because of it.
Did it ever occur to you that maybe the people in your “community” have different interests than journalism? Go check out the business program, for instance.
I think you should let your “brothers and sisters” make up their own minds about their careers and worry about yourself. There is nothing standing in the way of anyone getting into this program if they have the grades. And there is nobody standing in the way of success at journalism if they have the talent. If black people have other aspirations, I think you should respect that and let it go.
You are not “saddled with the responsibility of speaking for (your) people every time you put your pen to paper” and shouldn’t feel that way. You are a journalist, just like me, and it’s our job to report the news as it happens without bias or prejudice. If you stick to those standards like most ethical writers do, then I’m sure you will have both a successful career and set a positive example for your people. That will speak for itself.
Ryan Atkinson
Journalism 4
Leave a Reply