‘It’s Time to Talk: A Dialogue on Race and Racism’ is March 2 and 6
From Denise Dieffenbach,
Director, Multicultural Student Services
The core convictions of the University of St. Thomas state that as a community we are committed to pursuit of truth, academic excellence, faith and reason, dignity, diversity, personal attention and gratitude.
With those convictions in mind, the Multicultural Student Services Office, in collaboration with other university departments, will sponsor Community Dialogues. The intent of this series of discussions is to challenge members of the St. Thomas community to engage in honest and meaningful dialogue centering on topics consistent with our convictions. Dialogues will encourage listening and understanding of experiences and perceptions different from one’s own, challenge us to probe for deeper levels of awareness and, perhaps, discover new ways of building a stronger community.
I will join Debra Broderick and Kelly Petrino, Personal Counseling and Testing, and Raytosha O’Neal, Multicultural Student Services, in facilitating the first discussion, “It’s Time to Talk: A Dialogue on Race and Racism.”
Choose one of the following dates to participate in this dialogue:
- Noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, March 2, in Room 304, Murray-Herrick Campus Center
- 3-4:30 p.m. Monday, March 6, in the Fireside Room, Koch Commons
We thought that a Community Dialogue on race and racism would be an important discussion to have as we strive to actualize our core convictions. The convictions of dignity and diversity call us to respect the dignity of each person to create a more just and inclusive society.
Issues of race and racism present an enormous challenge for achieving this respect, and we believe that a simple way to address the elephant in the room is to have an honest dialogue about the issue. This event will be an opportunity to really listen to one another and to have the courage to be honest with ourselves about what we really think.
Margaret Wheatley, author of Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future, states that “it takes courage to start a conversation ... if we don’t start talking to one another, nothing will change. Conversation is the way we discover how to transform our world, together.”
Please join us in this important conversation. If you have questions, contact Multicultural Student Services, (651) 962-6460.
