Diversity and date auctions

Sometimes you've just got to buy some Asians. Last Friday was one of those times. Fortunately, the Asian American Association had a date auction that very night. \nThe event was to raise money for future triple-A events such as a fashion show to be held March 6 in the Willkie Auditorium. A friend of mine notified me of the existence of this date auction, as well as of the fact that several mutual Asian friends of ours were to be bid on. This was an opportunity neither of us could pass up.\nThe auction promised not only to make for an entertaining evening, but also to afford this middle class, Midwestern suburban WASP that rare experience of being a minority. Mine was far from the only Caucasian face in the crowd that evening, but it was one of only a few -- the others no doubt there at the behest of Asian friends or out of a joking desire to fulfill some exotic Geisha Girl fantasy. And, interesting enough, one white face belonged to an Asian American Association regular who, himself was put up to be bid on.\nThe Indiana Daily Student recently reported on the distinct self-segregation of students in the Indiana Memorial Union cafeteria. After last Friday, I'm not sure this is as much of an issue as it may at first seem to be. My being among a group largely comprised of a race other than my own was noteworthy in that it was illustrated that I, like most whites or most people of any race, have been habituated to associate with people who look like me. But then again, it may have nothing to do with race -- I'm also more inclined to hang out with people who shop at Kohl's than those who are decked out in Abercrombie and Fitch. I did not however, feel uncomfortable with my surroundings or get the sense anyone was uncomfortable with me.\nBesides, on this particular occasion, I was too amused by the event that brought me there to dwell on the race of those around me. The idea of a date auction is, after all, a rare and unusual one, humorous and socially awkward regardless of the color of your skin. Each man and woman in their turn sauntered in front of the crowd to hoots and applause as the MC listed their vital statistics, majors, interests and the like, ending each presentation with, "and fellas, she can dance."\nMy friend and I found ourselves in a bidding war for a mutual friend of ours who we ended up splitting for $29. We took our shared date to dinner and a party and laughed at the oddity of the evening.\nThe night made me optimistic about the state of diversity on this campus. Certainly it is nowhere near it would be in an ideal world, where every student would be exposed to a plethora of cultures. At the same time however, self-segregation in the cafeteria is no more necessarily indicative of a lack of diversity than the existence of an Asian American Association whose events are attended primarily by Asians. What really matters is everyone can coexist peacefully, and when we achieve that -- as I believe we on this campus have -- then it's time to focus on more important matters here and around the world.\nInstead of worrying ourselves over how diverse colleges are or how integrated the cafeteria looks, we could ask why so many of every race still aren't going to college at all. \nOur concern should go towards fixing crumbling high schools so everyone has a chance to succeed in college, and endowing more need-based scholarships so everyone has a chance to go. These problems are painted with more complex colors than those of race, and they cost more money to fix. But if money is the main concern, Friday gave me a creative fundraising idea.