NIU President John La Tourette’s letter summoning support to fight racism on campus was a good idea that was gone about the wrong way.

La Tourette sent letters to 165 students, staff and faculty who attended a conference titled “Racial Discrimination on Campus: Promoting Peer Initiatives and Student Action.” The letter was intended to be a pledge of personal commitment to end racism and discrimination on campus.

The pledge to fight racism anywhere is a good idea. However, people were offended because they were asked to sign the letter and return it to the president’s office.

Some people were afraid that someone would be keeping track of the people that returned the letters and thought that the letter writing campaign was a feeble attempt to fight an incredible monster.

And they are right. No matter how much good intention was meant with the letter and following pledge, the scheme simply didn’t work.

It didn’t work because people are generally skeptical when they are asked to sign their names to anything. It didn’t work because the letter idea was weak. It didn’t work because the pledge was gimmicky.

But the idea was good. Any attempt to fight racism at its roots, by contacting the people that would be exposed to racism every day either by witness or by example, is the right place to start.

But La Tourette and his staff should have seen that the idea might be taken in the wrong way, and should have either stopped the letters then or thought of a different way to accomplish the same thing.