Forum addresses diversity

By Christina Xenos
THE POST

A spectrum of colors and beliefs filled the Baker Center Ballroom at last night's Diversity Roundtable to address issues that affect everyone at Ohio University.

But there was something missing.

"Where are the white males?" former OU student Renard Phillips said. "It is conspicuous that there was a major group not represented in a function like this."

And many people at the discussion noticed.

"Diversity includes and effects all people," OU junior Will Smalls said.

Student senators from the International Affairs Commission; Black Affairs Commission; Minority Affairs Commission; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Commission and the Woman's Affairs Commission organized last evening's event, "Discussing the New Millennium: Where do we go from here?"

Senators had this discussion to determine what issues affect minorities and other students and to discover what can be done to address these issues.

"We want this to be a pro-active forum," said Kristin Tucker, LGBT commissioner.

Sherina Davis, OU NAACP president, addressed the issue of apathy and its effect on attendance at campus functions.

"Many people do not attend student organization meetings because they do not feel comfortable with the people there," she said.

Curriculum also was addressed at the meeting. Participants recognized some people have a difficult time dealing with diversity issues because they have never been exposed to it. Most OU courses do not deal specifically with diversity issues.

Chris Taylor, the assistant to the vice president for administration, focused on solutions that everybody could undertake to deal with diversity.

"We need to think of diversity in a larger context when we are trying to implement social change on the OU campus," she said.

Taylor said these issues need to be dealt with on three levels: structural issues, social issues and personal issues.

"If you don't know anyone different than you, then you have a big problem," Taylor said. "Change happens when you have a relationship with someone different and when you make a personal investment in that person."

Many issues were addressed during the meeting and, by the end, possible solutions were mentioned.

"I've taken two things away from this: I really want to work on (introducing) diversity into the curriculum and to build workshops that deal with diversity," IA Commissioner Lyndsay Markley said.