<p>My gut (sorry, completely irrational 
) says that if you’re having a reception after graduation, it’s a graduation activity. It’s an extension of the ceremony, which should be a college-wide event. In the (hypothetical) situation of one “generic” reception and specialized receptions, you are invariably segregating students by race - and that doesn’t sit well with me. My question is whether or not there is a general reception afterwards, to which the entire student body is invited. </p>
<p>Although students who have not been involved in religious life can attend graduation ceremonies, the purpose of those receptions is to gather the group together for a final farewell - students who have been practicing together for four years. Non-practicing students are also invited, but the reception isn’t really about them - just my guess.</p>
<p>Racial minorities, from the moment they arrive on campus, are often singled out for those groups. It’s based solely on the fact that they identified their race on their application. Specialized housing is certainly a “choice,” but, considering that it’s often that or $700/month in rent in an off-campus apartment, many students have a lot of incentive to self-segregate in student housing. </p>
<p>No one realised that, as an Irish girl from Boston, I should be invited to a Catholic group. My alma mater didn’t have Catholic housing, a Catholic “culture representative” to the student government, or a Christian studies major. Not that I’m complaining about the options available to minority students - just pointing out that there is a pervasive system that really encourages self-segregation. </p>
<p>I don’t disagree (at all!) that the author’s perceptions of separate receptions v. graduations is a little screwy. My concurrence is based on the idea that students go to college as a group and, in the race to be politically correct, college administrators invariably help segregate students by race. Many students (esp. at my alma mater) went to the school because of its racial and ethnic diversity, and a system that discourages interaction between people of different backgrounds really undermines what colleges have to offer.</p>