Exhibit confronts national discrimination issues
ResLife, local volunteers and the Aggies Think, Care, Act (ATCA) campaign organized an event to forward diversity and help prevent social injustice within the community, Tuesday in the TSC Ballroom, and yielded a turnout of 705 people.
The Light at the End of the Tunnel exhibit was created to confront issues of social injustice prevalent within our community. It was organized in a multi-staged, maze-like setup which took the viewer through many of the different forms of discrimination including racism, sexism, religious discrimination, and discrimination against those with mental and physical disabilities.
“I see a lot of religious discrimination … people aren’t actively going out of their way to offend others but because there is one dominant religion, people aren’t mindful that not everyone is part of that religion.”
At each stage, statistical facts were presented to create awareness of the existing problems within the community. One statistic displayed in the sexism section stated in 2006, 69,107 women reported experiences of domestic violence. The section depicting religious discrimination said in 2008 one in five hate crimes were targeted toward religion.
Participants were also invited to take part in activities like writing down a common stereotype on a large poster or watching video clips to help students understand the presence of these issues within the community. It was also organized to show that many people are guilty of discrimination, said Becca DuPaix, the event’s coordinator.
“I think a lot of times people just say things without really thinking about it like ‘that’s so gay’ or ‘that’s retarded,'” DuPaix said. “That is offensive to so many people and they don’t even think about it. They just say it … stereotyping and assuming without knowing.”
Angie Batista, a student who attended the event, said, “I think we need stuff like this to make us realize that bad things are going on in our society like racism and classism … and that we all might be guilty of being racist or homophobic at some point.”
Much of the event aimed at inspiring change on the individual level. ATCA, a campaign organized by the Student Engagement Committee, was utilized at the final stage of the event to ensure that students act on the information that was presented.
The ATCA’s philosophy is to help students “make positive individual decisions about the activities they choose to engage in” and learn “what it means to be an Aggie,” their initiative states.
Toward the end of the tour, students were given cards and invited to write down a goal of how they can better themselves personally. Wristbands were also given out to remind everyone that ‘We must be the change’ if we want to end discrimination.
At 6 p.m., refreshments were served and the event turned into an open format where anyone could discuss their views on diversity and social justice. This is the second time the event has been organized.
“We tried to give it a more hopeful spin, and it went really well,” DuPaix said.
Many students left with a much better understanding of social justice and felt inspired to make a difference.
“It turned out really, really well” DuPaix said, “A lot of people have come in and have been really respectful and are actually learning something.”
Cristina Medrano, a sophomore majoring in psychology, said, “It motivated me to teach and educate people about not calling people names … it helped me to want to speak up for those who are being judged or discriminated against. It gives me the motivation to (stand up) because that’s the right thing to do.”
– kevin.mitchell@aggiemail.usu.edu