Mike Rowe recently criticized the celebration of “segregation” at the prestigious Harvard University, which will reportedly allow students to celebrate their graduation day with a “series of affinity celebrations.” These events are reportedly labeled for various ethnic groups, sexualities, etc.
The “Dirty Jobs” host expressed his disdain for this practice in a Facebook post, calling out the Ivy League college for its seemingly counterintuitive approach to celebrating diversity. Rowe pointed out that the separate graduation ceremonies are essentially segregating groups of students.
This year, Harvard is once again permitting its students to observe graduation day with a series of “affinity celebrations.” These celebrations allow students to separate themselves from each other based on their racial and ethnic identities, and then, celebrate graduation with their own kind. I’m old enough to remember when this was called “segregation.” At Harvard, they call it “affinity,” Rowe wrote.
However, he noted that per the university’s website, the celebrations do not replace the official graduation ceremony and are technically open to any students. But this does not detract from the fact that the respective celebrations are explicitly labeled for specific groups.
“To be fair, Harvard’s website says these celebrations are not in lieu of the official graduation, and open to all students who pre-register. But the celebrations themselves are clearly labeled, and the invitees are hard to misconstrue. Among those events listed, are The Latinix Celebration, The Black Celebration, The Arab Celebration, The Jewish Celebration, The Global Indigenous Celebration, The Lavender Celebration, (LGBTQ, etc.) The Asian American Celebration, and my personal favorite, The First-Generation Low-Income Celebration,” the post continued.
Rowe then mocked the university, sarcastically pointing out that separating groups seems like an ironic way to celebrate diversity. “What better way to celebrate Harvard’s rich commitment to diversity, then by encouraging diverse groups to celebrate separately?” he questioned.
The “Dirty Jobs” star also took the post as an opportunity to draw attention to his foundation, “mikeroweWORKS,” which seeks to promote the importance of skilled labor. He noted that the one’s immutable characteristics are of no importance to his foundation.
“At mikeroweWORKS, we couldn’t care less about the color of your skin, the country of your origin, or the number of Y chromosomes you were born with. We are likewise utterly disinterested in your star sign, your blood type, your eye color, or any other characteristic out of your control,” he added.
Rowe continued emphasizing how factors such as work ethic and accountability should be more desired than an uncontrollable feature such as race or gender, while highlighting how these traits could land an individuals one of his merit-based scholarships.
“We do however, care about your thoughts on personal responsibility, work ethic, delayed gratification, a positive attitude, and various other virtues we still believe can lead to a successful life and career. For that reason, we award work ethic scholarships to men and women who wish to attend a trade school. A trade school, where students are encouraged to work together, celebrate their accomplishments together, and then, put their skills to use in a country filled with people who don’t necessarily look like them,” he added.
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