sticks and stones

Some news from last week, out of American University... Rick Kamdar, a senior at AU, was expelled for "discrimination, physical abuse and conduct that endangers others" over an incident that occurred last November:

Rick Kamdar, formerly a senior in the Kogod School of Business, was expelled for an incident that occurred Nov. 18, in which a verbal fight on the Letts-Anderson Quad escalated into a physical altercation.

Kamdar said the incident began when he asked a student on the quad for a light, and the student's friend told Kamdar to "Go back to India." Kamdar then used an anti-gay slur against the student and the two began pushing each other. The fight was quickly broken up by Public Safety.

"The word fag is a very common word; it doesn't always mean gay," Kamdar said. "Did I know he was gay? No. Apparently American University has concluded that people can look gay."

While JAMS also charged Kamdar with physical abuse and conduct that endangers others, he said he was told by the Student Advocacy Center that discrimination leads to an immediate dismissal. However, he said he feels the other student's "Go back to India" comment was also discriminatory.

Here's the article: Expelled student to appeal ruling. Okay, Kamdar is pretty much an idiot for saying what he did (and his "common word" defense is a bit ridiculous), whether he knew the other guy was gay or not. I don't know much about what happened outside of what's in the article, but according to the administration, discrimination leads to and immediate dismissal. That said, I gotta ask, shouldn't the guy who provoked Kamdar with "Go back to India" also have to face some disciplinary consequences?