The Editorial Board at The DePauw is composed of three caucasian sorority women. We are all pleased to be a part of making The DePauw, but if we are being honest with ourselves we are not a diverse group of people and we love to chase sensational stories.
The DePauw Dialogue 2.0 is an opportunity for us--and the rest of campus--to learn and discuss diversity of all types: race, (dis)ability, gender, sexual orientation, the list goes on. What excites us the most about the Dialogue is the opportunity to expand the discussions of last year beyond racial issues, which, while important, are by no means the only inclusion and diversity problems that we have on our campus.
While the lectures from professionals at last year’s Dialogue were informative, discussions afterward were difficult to get going because people felt too timid to lead the groups. Having qualified professionals lead discussions about specific topics will hopefully allow students, faculty and staff to speak their minds and contribute to the conversation in a meaningful way.
The ultimate goal for this Dialogue, which will replace classes on April 6, is for all those on campus to understand one another’s experiences and lives better. If people are in a setting where they feel comfortable sharing their personal stories related to the topic, they will be more likely to be receptive to each other’s experiences and truly want to learn more about the struggles that their peers have had to live with.
It is for this reason that DePauw Student Government plans to train students to lead smaller discussion groups and plan the day in general. As of right now, only 20 students have volunteered to aid in the planning and execution of this important day on campus. DSG’s goal is 150.
At this point, it is on the students of DePauw whether to take advantage of the opportunity to be a part of this day or not. If we do not respond to the call for volunteers and tell DSG what we want to get out of this day, then we have no right to be upset if we are disappointed by what we learn or don’t learn.
This is an opportunity for everyone on this campus to expose themselves to what our minority populations are feeling and to support them in any way we can. We want to show the many people on this campus who have been feeling the pressures of discrimination that our differences do not define us. Let us come together to make this vision a reality.