UAB Gets $5 Million Anonymous Donation -- White Men Whine

This is Kathy from Birmingham Blues. I posted about the UAB donation at my place this morning and immediately heard from a poor downtrodden white guy -- I've included his comment and my reply below the original post. Liss, thanks as always for the guest-post opportunity!

The University of Alabama at Birmingham has received an anonymous $5 million donation, one of at least 16 around the country that have gone to woman-led universities. The money comes with stipulations: $4 million must be used to fund scholarships for women and minority students, and the recipients can't attempt to find out the donor's identity.

Predictably, the white males at al.com, upset that they've never, ever, over the course of human history been granted any advantages because of their white maleness, are complaining about discrimination.

Sheesh. I'm thinking that may deserve a Whiny Ass Titty Baby^tm Award.

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Reader Jonathan did not appreciate my take on the story:

I haven’t read AL.com today, so I don’t know what the white males over there are saying.

But this white male is saying that’s wonderful that a donation was made of that size and that it’s going to help minorities and women. I say we need more of that.

Now all I ask is that when someone wants to start a white males only scholarship or a donor wishes to donate a large sum of money and have stipulations that it can only be used for white males, that it be allowed just as we’ve allowed the above donation and millions other that are just as selective in their criteria.

Wait, what’s that? That would be discrimination? Interesting… Guess equality is a one way street.

To which I responded:

No, Jonathan, equality is not a one-way street. If we had reached actual equality of opportunity in this country, you’d see far more women in particular in top leadership positions — we do, after all, make up 50+ percent of the population.

For centuries, the best jobs and the scholarships, legacies, and recommendations from the power network went almost exclusively to white men. No one had to designate them so; it was simply assumed that white men were better qualified — and the people hiring, granting admission, or distributing scholarships gave them to those who looked and sounded like them.

We have only just begun in the past couple of decades to progress beyond that way of thinking, and we still have a way to go before we’re really beyond it.

Commenter Zach was a bit more direct:

Wow Jonathan, Douchebag, party of one?