Students step away from stereotypes

Oakland gained a number of bridges last night, and none of them move cars across a river.

A… Oakland gained a number of bridges last night, and none of them move cars across a river.

A diverse group of students congregated Wednesday night for a workshop designed to bridge cultural gaps and inspire new relationships among students with different backgrounds. The workshop, held in the Hillel building on Forbes Avenue, was the first of a three-part series intended to cross-pollinate different multicultural and minority groups on campus through hands-on exercises and open dialogues. The Campus Women’s Organization, Black Action Society, Rainbow Alliance, Student Government Board and Hillel all participated in the event.

The workshop focused primarily on identity: first on understanding personal identity, and then on appreciating and accepting others’. Students worked to step away from stereotypes and norms, while making efforts to understand other people.

“An event like this promotes diversity, which is especially important for a city campus,” said Zachary Ransom, an SGB member who helped organize the program. “It promotes awareness and sympathy toward unity and diversity.”

Sara Fatell, co-chair of the diversity committee at Hillel, echoed the importance of identifying with a variety of people.

“It doesn’t help when Rainbow Alliance is the only group fighting for gay rights. It doesn’t help when CWO is the only group fighting for women’s rights,” she said. “We have to bridge the gap.”

Developed mainly by Jackie Braslawsce of Hillel, the workshop included human bingo, identity wheels and human clay sculpting, but the students’ shared stories and experiences promoted empathy among the many different identities present.

“Creating relationships is the most important thing,” said Braslawsce, the senior program director for Hillel. “There are five organizations involved in this activity that fostered relationships by using interactive projects and dialogue.”

The event began with the human bingo activity, designed to expose common ground among participants by requiring the signatures of people who fit into various categories. A wide field of descriptive phrases, ranging from “comes from a biracial or interfaith home” to “has dated someone of another ethnicity,” provided an icebreaking illustration of the diversity present in the room.

The social identity wheel, presented by Ransom, required participants to label eight social groups to which they belong, including groups based on race, class, gender or sexual orientation. The wheel served as a means of promoting respect for one’s self, as well as for those in totally different social groups.

“The way you perceive yourself is more important than the way others perceive you,” he said. “You need to identify with people you didn’t think you ever would identify with.”

Selena Henry, a freshman attending the workshop, offered her opinion on broadening social and cultural boundaries.

“Randomly meeting someone new is bridging the gap,” she said. “You never know what they will bring to the table.”

As the group of approximately 20 students gathered and mingled at the end of the night,Braslawsce restated the importance of such an event.

“Our responsibility is to be allies for each other,” she said. “It is not an option, it is a responsibility.”