BILL GIDUZ photo
David Dennis leads off Thursday’s rally at Davidson College.
By MICHELLE JESTER
DavidsonNews.net
About 250 students, faculty and community members gathered outside the Davidson College student union Thursday night in a “Rally for Change” that organizers hope will help change attitudes about diversity on campus.
“Every day is a great day to be a Wildcat. But today, March 13th, is a NEW day to be a Wildcat,” Davidson senior David Dennis told the crowd at the start of the rally. Mr. Dennis was at the center of a racial incident last month that inspired Thursday night’s event.
Organizers said the rally was designed as an open forum for discussing the fears underlying all forms of diversity and to promote greater respect. They said they hoped the gathering would end an era of asking for respect of diversity and begin an era of demanding respect and acceptance.
On Feb. 15, Mr. Dennis and 20 of his African-American, non-Davidson friends were verbally abused and mistreated while trying to attend a fraternity party. Afterward, heated discussions ensued on campus about why differences make others uncomfortable. Mr. Dennis wrote about the incident in a column in The Davidsonian student newspaper titled “Does my presence make you feel uncomfortable?”
These discussions culminated in planning for the Rally for Change. Some rally participants wore T-shirts bearing the quote “Do I Make You Uncomfortable?”
SPEAKERS AND DISCUSSION
At 7 p.m. Thursday, participants gathered outside in the student union’s outdoor ampitheatre to discuss diversity and listen to speakers. Besides Mr. Dennis, they included Davidson College Chaplain Rob Spach; Mike Parsons, the former President of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and representative of Davidson’s fraternity and eating house umbrella organization Patterson Court; current and incoming student body presidents Chris Burton and Davis Greene; and college President Tom Ross.
Dr. Spach emphasized the commitment to diversity in Davidson’s published statement of purpose. Mr. Parsons discussed “white guilt” and “white silence,” the belief that white people have no right to talk about race, and how those ideas don’t help the community grow but perpetuate a cycle of misconception and fear.
Mr. Burton and Mr. Greene stressed the healing qualities of these discussions for the community. By making them permanent issues on campus, programs should help bring us together and make our community stronger, they said.
President Ross said discussions about the fears and values of diversity ultimately help us to learn something about ourselves. “Although these discussions are oftentimes tiresome,” he said, “if we care about each other and the community, we will persevere so that we can learn about ourselves and each other and develop a greater respect and acceptance.”
OPEN DISCUSSION
After the formal speeches, the gathering was opened up for discussion. Comments came from both students and faculty and ranged from the extent of diversity to personal identities.
Several people pointed out that each person is different not just because of race or sexual orientation but also because of their different interests and beliefs.
We are all human beings, said one senior student, and there is more to each of us than any label, such as “black,” “white,” “athlete,” “Christian,” etc.
“We need to speak up,” he continued. “We are where we are today because of previous generations’ being angry about something and speaking up about it. This generation doesn’t do that, but this [the Rally for Change] is a great example.”
Several speakers stressed the importance of continued discussion on diversity so that the fears and misconceptions could be better understood and eventually overcome. Although speakers acknowledged that the event would not end to the issue, participants seemed determined to make things better and develop a stronger and more open community that would make everyone feel welcome.
RELATED LINKS
Feb. 27, 2008, The Davidsonian student newspaper, “Recent Incident Not Just Court Problem” – a commentary on the Feb. 15th incident by student Paul Stroup
Feb. 27, 2008, The Davidsonian student newspaper, “Does my presence make you feel uncomfortable?” – commentary by student David Dennis, who was involved in the Feb. 15 incident.
March 12, 2008, “Campus rally targets intolerance”
