Know before you go: how to tell if your prospective college is hostile to people of color

Recently there was an article in the Washington Post's Express about Washington and Lee University's decision to remove the Confederate flag. The move was in response to protests by African-American students that the university is unwelcoming to minorities. I'm torn between applauding the student's for their victory and scolding them for being naïve. Surely, these young activists who are intelligent enough to attend university weren't surprised by the environment they found at this institution. These students probably had other places that could have gone to university but they chose a place that had several, pardon the expression, red flags that it was not welcoming to people of color. If you're a young person looking to attend university, here are four signs your school might be a hostile environment for African-Americans and other people of color.

1. The school is named for a historical figure whose claim to fame is his oppression of black people.
2. That historical figure is buried on campus.
3. The confederate is flying there.
4. The university owned and sold slaves, but has never expressed regret for that history.

Who Put Bosses in the Examination Room?

Since the Supreme Court ruled that businesses can choose not participate in the Affordable Care Act's birth control mandate for religious reasons, lawmakers who disagree are in an uproar. For example, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has gone as far to say we need to "...keep bosses out of the examination room." If government had not gone into the examination room first and ordered bosses to follow, employers wouldn't be there. By passing ACA, lawmakers put bosses in the examination room. If Mr. Reid really wants bosses out of to be in private healthcare lives of employees, he shouldn't be mandating what healthcare expenses employers must cover.

Not surpringly, the White House also disagrees with the ruling. White House press secretary Josh Earnest joined Reid's effort to express outrage by making outrageous statements. Earnest said the ruling "jeopardizes the health of women that are employed by these companies." Really? In what way is their health in jeopardy? Because they have to pay for their own birth control? Or horrors abstain until they can afford to do so?

Hopefully, the American people can think more deeply about these issues than some of our leaders have. The ultimate question is not about bosses in the exam room. The true question is do we want to be a nation that forces people to violate their religious convictions to legally participate in the marketplace. If that's the country we want to be, what makes the United States different from other countries that try to force their citizens to violate their religious beliefs.