Get ready to walk the “Privilege Walk,” if you haven’t already. I pick

these things up out of the media, assuming that they are fringe phenomena

practiced by a few wackos in darkest Academe. Not so: According to a

reader, the “Privilege Walk” is rapidly being institutionalized, and no

doubt will soon be incorporated into those dopey “sensitivity” training

sessions that have been cutting into the productivity of U.S. business for

the past several years. Here is my reader’s e-mail, slightly bowdlerized

for his protection: “After reading your column, I thought it might interest

you to know that the ‘privilege walk’ is required for all students serving

as Resident Advisors (upperclassmen living in freshman dorms to show the new

students the ropes) and as ‘Minority Affairs Advisors’ (self-explanatory

nonsense) at [here is the name of an Ivy League university]. I have a friend

who works as an RA who refused to participate and got into quite a bit of

trouble. The ‘privilege walk’ is becoming pretty institutionalized at the

other Ivy League schools too I’m told.”