To the Editor:

While reading George Yancy's article "A Professor Tackles Racism in the Classroom" (Diversity in Academe, The Chronicle, October 11), I was heartened to learn that, when he asked his class who harbored sexist attitudes, Mr. Yancy was the first to raise his hand and admit to this terrible deed. I was also delighted to learn that, when he asked his class who harbored racist sentiments, he did not raise his hand. Nor, apparently, did he or any member of a minority group in his class relate any racist sentiments they had felt.

The fact that, in his classroom, racism is apparently only relegated to white people unfortunately does not reflect the world outside of it. Just ask, for example, the Jews at the receiving end of Jesse Jackson's "Hymietown" remark, the white policemen in Tawana Brawley's case, and the Korean-Americans whose businesses were targeted by mobs during the Los Angeles riots. While it's comforting to learn that Professor Yancy and other members of minority groups in his class are free of racism, not everyone has been so fortunate.

Darian Qureshi
Tucson, Ariz.