Correction to the photo essay
perilous.substack.com
Correction to the photo essay
Mistakes were made...as they say
I am always grateful for astute readers who point out errors in Perilous Times. It turns out that my piece on elite university athletics contained a photo of the men’s lacrosse team from Columbia College, Missouri, not Columbia University, New York (Cougars vs Lions - at least both felines!). I also learned that lacrosse is a club sport at Columbia University, not a varsity sport.
I have made amends by inserting a photo of the men’s lacrosse team from the University of North Carolina, one of the defendants in the Supreme Court litigation (wow, 52 players on the roster). And so Columbia University does not get off the hook, I’ve also added photo of its men’s cross country team in action.
My point remains unchanged.
Dean - I am fine having a cross country team. I just don't see why there should be any preferential admissions for cross country runners. Basketball and football at least contribute to the environment on campus and school spirit -- Duke is a better place because of these teams. And of course I believe there should be equal numbers of male and female athletes. But no one can even watch a cross country meet, let alone a sailing regatta.
Cross country! Now I'm hurt. (As an undergrad, I ran for Duke.)
But seriously, what a great point! Even if you grant that country club sports are not an intentional strategy to boost admissions, this type of systematic problem is real and makes something like affirmative action a necessary counterbalance.