Race and Ethnicity, spring 2007
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Facing the Truth: A Reconciliation Effort in Northern Ireland | February 27

In early March 2006, the BBC aired Facing the Truth, a three part television series that brought victims and perpetrators of the conflict in Northern Ireland together for dialogue. Archbishop Desmond Tutu facilitated the encounters along with Lesley Bilinda whose husband was killed in the Rwandan genocide, and Donna Hicks, former Deputy Director of the Program on International Conflict Analysis and Resolution at Harvard University and currently an Associate at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. Donna Hicks facilitated a discussion with the CLark community following the airing of one of the programs.

Who Framed Bilingual Education? | March 13

'Because language is so deeply a cultural phenomenon and resource for creating and maintaining identities, when language becomes a battle ground – as it has in the field of bilingual education – we know that something larger than clarity of communication is at issue.' Fern Johnson

In 2002, Colorado voters said “NO” and Massachusetts voters said “YES” to discontinuing “bilingual education.” Fern Johnson, Professor of English, considered how the press framed the issue in each state in our first Race and Ethnicity event of the Spring semester. She argued that the public has been ill-informed about this significant language policy issue, and that monolingual language ideology prevails in the U.S.

Broken Promises, Broken Dreams | March 14

Alice Rothchild is an obstetrician-gynecologist who has worked in the health care reform and women’s movements for many years. Since 1997, she has focused much of her energy on understanding the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, and was at Clark on March 14th to read from her forthcoming book Broken Promises, Broken Dreams. Through first-hand narratives with Israeli and Palestinian women, she invites the reader to engage in a different kind of conversation, grounded in empathy and forgiveness and coupled with an appreciation of the urgent need for political action.

LEARN MORE
visit Alice Rothchild's website

What Makes Me White? | March 29

     
from L to R: Odile Ferly; Aimee Sands; a student asks a question after the film

On March 29th, the Clark community explored how white people form their own racial identity and how they deal with white privilege after viewing the thought-provoking film, What Makes Me White, by Aimee Sands. This was the first public screening of the film which includes readings and interviews that span diverse economic levels of the white community, from a resident in an affluent suburb to white and black students in Boston’s METCO program. By exploring the dynamics of racial socialization among whites, Sands’ film encourages the audience to consider the roots of racism. A question and answer session with the filmmaker and a multi-racial panel followed – panelists included: Winston Napier, Franklin Frazier Chair and Associate Professor of English; Miriam Chion, Assistant Professor of Community Development and Planning; Betsy Huang, Assistant Professor of English; Odile Ferly, Assistant Professor of French, Foreign Languages & Literatures; and Anne Ellen Geller, Director of the Writing Center and Writing Program.

Periracism | April 5

In Notes on the State of Virginia, first published in 1782, Thomas Jefferson waxed at once poetic and scientific about the biological differences between the races. Difference was of course more than skin deep for Jefferson, but like so many of his time, he was fascinated by the external geography of the other, by what his eyes beheld, especially what he called “this unfortunate difference of colour,” “the first difference which strikes us.” In this talk, drawn from a book in progress, Ann duCille, Professor of English and African American Studies at Wesleyan University, argued that racialized thinking about color, quality, and character hasn’t changed as much since the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as polite society would like to believe. Moreover, this ever-present racism—what she defined in this talk as “periracism”—often masquerades as social grace, civility, and liberalism.

Coming Alive to this Moment: Introduction to Zen Practice

Zen Buddhist practice provides a deceptively simple structure that allows us to become more deeply aware of what is occurring in this moment. Rather than looking outside ourselves, or trying to understand life through thinking and analyzing, we discover the aliveness that is already present. In this three-hour participatory workshop we will used guided meditation exercises, mindful dialogue and group inquiry to experience the living Zen tradition as it is taught by two American Zen teachers. David Dayan Rynick Sensei and Melissa Myozen Blacker Sensei, who have been practicing Zen since 1981, guide the Worcester Zen Community. Following the workshop, we hald a three-hour retreat that allowed participants to experience an extended period of formal Zen meditation. The morning included sitting and walking meditation as well as a traditional Zen talk and opportunities for individual meetings with the teachers, ending with a time for group discussion.

LEARN MORE
Attend the Fall 07 semester's weekly meditation sessions begininng Thursday, September 13th 8:30am | Dana Commons, second floor lounge

Day of Listening | April 11

The Day of Listening highlights listening as an essential element of effective dialogue. Each hour-long session is about taking a moment to pause, to really listen to each other and to explore the relationship of listening to dialogue. This session was focused on the current symposium topic, Race and Ethnicity, and addressed the role of dialogue and listening. It also gave us a chance to reflect on issues that had been raised in our symposium events thus far.

Race is the Place | April 12

On April 12th, Difficult Dialogues screened the film Race is the Place for the Clark community. A video performance documentary with a bold, lyrical, and often poetical montage of performances by established artists and up-and-coming young talent from minority communities who use words—spoken, sung or chanted—to get their message across. Each segment explores racism and its continued survival in this country, and each finds new and innovative ways to engage audiences and challenge them to think beyond our traditional conceptions. Artists include Piri Thomas, Amiri Baraka, Mayda del Valle, Michael Franti, Faith Ringgold, Michael Ray Charles, Culture Clash, Beau Sia, Andy Bumatai and more...

Following the film, we held a Conversation Cafe with students in which we were able to listen to others and to share our own thoughts surrounding Race and Ethnicity. It was a chance for us to talk together openly, to find out where our views differed, where we agreed and to see what we could learn from eachother through dialogue.

LEARN MORE
visit the Race is the Place website

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