Monday, I received an open letter from a member of the movement to change the name of Carrie Chapman Catt Hall, also known the September 29th Movement.

The letter was written in response to a column I wrote arguing that the name of the building in question should not be changed.

This isn’t the first time, of course, I’ve received responses to the things I have said in my columns. But this letter had a uniquely personal feel to it. The author seemed to be singling me out as the unofficial leader of the forces that are aligned to maintain the name of the building, rather than sticking to and effectively addressing the issue.

The very personal nature of the attack caused within me a desire to respond directly. I thought, the gauntlet having been thrown down, that I would respond in kind.

But, it’s not about me or him.

I have decided to respond to the challenge by addressing this column to those Iowa State students, faculty and staff who are really interested in genuine change, rather than the moral absolutism that the Anti-Catt movement represents and the waste of time, effort and resources it constitutes.

I am appealing to those of you who can and wish to be objective and fair-minded in your dealings with others to consider the danger the overzealousness of this cause represents to our community.

Now, I feel I must warn you that there are dangers involved.

You will in all likelihood be called a racist if you’re European-American (or some other ethnicity other than black), because a number of the members of this group have decided to use the epithet as a tactic to achieve their goal.

I urge you to remain strong in your convictions. Only you can know your motivations for your actions. If you know in your heart that it is not your goal to spread any notions of white supremacy, stand firm.

If you happen to be African-American, you will be charged with guilt by association. A not so subtle effort to imply that you are “doing massa’s bidding.” They will accuse you of attempting to “make nice nice” with the conservative and racist forces aligned against the black community. They will accuse you of being more interested in harmony than confrontation. They will probably question your motives and allegiances, wondering aloud if you are “honoring your ancestors.”

Nevertheless, I urge you to do the bidding of justice by not falling prey to the self-righteous fervor of this group. I would ask you to remind yourself in any moment of weakness of resolve that we all are flawed, but that we all carry within us the cleansing light of hope and truth.

Remember Bayard Rustin, the black strategist who was instrumental in the planning of the 1963 March on Washington who was not allowed to participate in the public limelight by the civil rights leaders because he was gay.

Remember, that while one must have the courage to fight for change through confrontation, a wise leader and activist also has the wisdom and wherewithal to carefully choose his battles.

Remember, while we must at times choose a separate path, the goal of cooperation is a noble and worthy one worth fighting for.

If you remember these things, I assure you that you will be honoring your ancestors by doing the right thing, not just the mob-mentality thing.

To you all, whatever your ethnicity, I urge you to focus on the very real problems of race and gender that we are faced with in this country in general and on this campus in particular, rather than wasting your and our collective time with fighting over the name of a university building.

Blacks and other people of color are still denied real comprehensive access to the rewards of being American. Women are still devalued in this society and abused, raped and murdered by the men who comprise half of it.

At ISU, blacks and hispanics suffer from retention and matriculation rates so low that they boggle the mind (e.g., Of any given entering class of black freshman, 25 percent are expected to finish with ISU degrees in a six year period).

I urge you all to not fall into the trap of moral absolutism as has Anti-Catt movement. Don’t set yourselves up as judges of the heart, mind and soul of all humankind and in the process deny humankind its humanity.

The Anti-Catt movement members have decided that a person’s good acts have no bearing on how he or she will be judged in the eyes of history. Rather, you can expect to be condemned for your sins, irrespective of your good works (unless you happen to be something akin to a saint). I urge you to be better than that. Above all, I urge you to try to build something rather than simply try to tear something down.

I urge you to support positive change by demanding that Dr. Jischke and the university administration set aside resources for the support of diversity and multiculturalism at ISU.

Demand to know, for example, why the diversity plan received no increase in funding this year, when all other departments in general administration received increases for the new school year.

In other words, focus on what matters. Have the depth of vision necessary to see the forest and not the trees. Remember why we are here.

Rather than being a member of the date-of-some-article movement, be a member of the 90-Percent-Black-Graduation-Rate movement. Be a member of the Build-A-New-BCC movement.

Rather than being angry that the university raised $5 million dollars to renovate a building and name it after a racist white woman, find a way to do the same for a cause you believe in.

And when someone asks you if you are Pro-Catt, tell them you’re Pro-Progress and that while you don’t have a problem with Catt (because you have the maturity of perspective to recognize her accomplishments and criticize her shortcomings), you could really care less because you’ve got more important things on your mind.

Peace.

David Mosby is a senior in political science from Chicago.