Students celebrate Conversations on Race

About 75 students met Wednesday night to celebrate the culmination of Conversations on Race, a five-week program coordinated to give students from diverse backgrounds an environment to discuss racial issues.\nDoug Bauder, coordinator of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Student Support Services, said all 12 discussion groups that participated were represented at the closing program. \n"The students were really open," he said. "The only complaint we heard was that the program wasn't long enough."\nSome students said they felt uplifted by the program. \nProgram facilitator Jaret Fishman, a sophomore, said through the dialogues they hoped to shatter stereotypes, planting a seed of thought in the minds of participants.\n"I have begun to think more before I speak and to realize whether someone may be offended by what I say," sophomore Andrew Castner said. "I have also developed more tolerance."\nThe purpose of the program was the talk about and listen to experiences with racism.\n"There is a big problem in America with people discounting the credibility of other peoples' experiences, especially experiences with racism, by saying things like 'it's not my fault' or 'that doesn't happen where I'm from,'" program facilitator Dru Clark, a senior, said. "When you invalidate a person's real experiences by not believing or listening to them, you tell them that their life is less important."\n The atmosphere during the closing program was positive. Some black students spoke about the friendships they made during the program that they would not have made otherwise. White students said they found a new awareness of racism that they had never considered.\n "The most enlightening part of this experience, for me, was learning more about the anger and frustration that black people have, and legitimately so, for white people," sophomore Carolyn Heidrich said.\nThe students were not the only ones who felt this program had profoundly influenced their lives. Senior Shaila Mulholland, a program facilitator, said she enjoyed watching the students grow and learn as they explored the cultural issues. \nClark said the best part of the program, for him, was discussing the topic of "white privilege." \n"In a society that values hard work and individuality above all else, white people want to deny the idea that we have received anything in life thanks to the color of our skin," Clark said. "When you are confronted with a list of a hundred different examples of how white people benefit from being white, it is a very hard thing for many white people to understand and own up to."\nAs the evening came to an end, Bauder said, although the formal program was coming to a close, it wasn't really the end. He said a number of students were nodding. \n"It's really just the beginning for us," he said.\nMany said they felt this is something they would encourage other and future students to participate them.\n"This experience is a good outlet and a great way to share your feelings about racism," freshman Monica Coffman said. "I've gained so much from learning where other people come from, not just geographically, but emotionally."\nClark summed up his hopes for what the participants got out of the program by saying: "What we need, now, is to listen to each other and to let the experiences of others simmer in our heads and hearts"