How was it poor judgment to respond the way they did?
By not considering the context. If the kid was just singing along to a rap song, then it seems pretty innocuous and clearly not intended to be disparaging of any marginalized people.
As I mentioned in a previous post, the history of race and racism can be intertwined with the history of American music. There was a time when racist Americans were shocked and dismayed at white American youth listening and dancing to music by black performers. It's probably a long side discussion, but the point is, they didn't really put much thought into this at all. All they had was "white boy said n-word, therefore white boy's scholarship gets cancelled." Context doesn't matter. Circumstances don't matter. One might wonder if it's just some computer making the decision and whether an actual human being had anything to do with it.
I wouldn't be surprised if the school is open to an appeal by the kid, and if he presents a sincere case then perhaps he will be reinstated.
Maybe. Or he might go somewhere else.
Realize kids awarded scholarshis are being given a gift worth tens of thousands of dollars, and they are owed nothing. They have a responsibility to behave in a way that honors what they have been awarded.
Well, it's also NCAA, but that's also another sordid topic. However, I get your general point here and I agree with it in theory. But it still leaves open the question regarding the judgment of those making the evaluation of another's behavior and declaring it to be good or evil.
Just like gays in FL? Just like Disney? Just like felons who were issued voting cards and then arrested for voting? MAGAs lashjing out against marginalized people is their intent. They are lashing out against institutions and businesses for being tolerant and standing by certain standards of behavior is exactly WHY they shouldn't fear the bullying, and make their decisions independently.
Well, yes, again I agree with you, but they can't deny the political realities they're facing. There's no indication that this kid is MAGA or right-wing. I don't see him as being intolerant or insensitive towards marginalized people, even if he didn't understand the ramifications of what he was doing. I understand your point about standing up to bullying, but that's all the more reason to avoid going after people who aren't bullies and aren't malignant like the MAGA types you mention. All it does is create another martyr they can use to advance their cause.
As to your point that "MAGAs lashing out against marginalized people is their intent," I agree with that, but that's only part of it. MAGAs are lashing out against a political faction, and marginalized people are the easiest targets to go after. Likewise, there are some who oppose MAGA who might find the easiest targets in that crowd to attack. I remember a case a few years ago when some miscreants attacked a guy in a wheelchair because he was wearing a MAGA hat. They weren't "fighting the power" or standing up to a "bully." They were attacking a defenseless man in a wheelchair. These things do happen, and these are the kinds of things which are given prominent coverage in right-wing media. I don't think they listen to rap music either, so if you ever hear them use the "n-word," it would be in a completely different context than it was with this kid.
All I'm really saying here is that we should put more thought and consideration into these matters, rather than operate according to some kind of prescribed formula or computer program.
Was it knee-jerk? I doubt this is the first time the school had a problem with a scholarship recipient.
And if there is consequences by the MAGA gov then that will enfold when it comes up. But I defend moral and ethical standards by institutions, businesses, and individuals, and their efforts to oppose those in society who are indifferent to harming others, and also driven by their beliefs to harm others, especially the marginialized.
I question this only because the kid was singing along to a song, which he obviously enjoyed listening to. Music has made an enormous contribution to our culture and history. I can't justify or defend everything that's happened in America, but I do know that among whites who cared about social justice, a lot of that came about through interaction with and partaking of the culture and arts of the various diverse peoples of America. This is how we learn to understand each other. This is how we learn to like each other and co-exist with each other and not regard each other as threats or something to fear. This is how we come together. This is how we keep from harming each other or being indifferent to other people's harm.
Sometimes, there might be clumsy, awkward moments such as this - where a white kid is singing along to some rap song which has the "n-word" in it. Does that mean he wants to harm people? I see no evidence of that. Is this some institution defending ethical and moral standards by essentially discouraging white people from listening to or enjoying music from other races or cultures? Is this what they're trying to do? Are they saying that music should be segregated by race?
Do you not understand the difference between singing a song vs an injury.