Arizona State University is offering a course exploring the “problem” of whiteness. The controversial class, taught by a white professor (of course), explores race theory, post-colonialism, and a host of other pseudo-intellectual topics centered on white privilege:

The public university is offering an English class to its students this semester called “Studies in American Literature/Culture: U.S. Race Theory & the Problem of Whiteness.”

“I think it shows the significant double standard of higher education institutions,” James Malone, a junior economics major, told Campus Reform. “They would never allow a class talking about the problem of ‘blackness.’ And if they did, there would be an uproar about it. But you can certainly harass people for their apparent whiteness.”

Indeed. Can you even imagine a class being offered in any college with The Problem of Blackness in its title? Why is this okay? It is patently racist to talk about skin color as if it is, in itself, a problem. If my skin color is the problem, what can I do about it? Nothing. So there’s not even any point in talking about it. Unless whiteness is actually a compound of culture, heritage, and traditional community practice. Which makes this in some ways even worse. Are we supposed to be ashamed of our skin color and our heritage? What are we supposed to even do about that? Curl up and die? I’m guessing that’s what a lot of people would prefer. I’m not sure that would make a difference for good in the world.

And why do we continue to support this kind of scholarship with public tax dollars? If some quack wants to spend his free time exercising his free speech propounding abjectly racist ideas, I don’t think we can force him to stop. But why should we all be forced to pay that quack to not only come up with these stupid ideas, but also teach them to others.

It’s ridiculous.