War concerns include racism

There was no common thread in terms of race, religion or age among the 100 or so audience members who gathered in the Neal-Marshall Grand Hall Tuesday night.\nWhat everyone did share was a strong concern about the potential war in Iraq and racism within the U.S. military.\nThey expressed their concerns through poetry, essays and music.\n"The Color of War" was put together to allow students and professors to creatively discuss the role race plays in war and the military.\nSophomore Mzilikazi Ashaki Kone, a member of the Coalition to Oppose War in Iraq, helped organize the event. The event was designed to give people the chance to have an open discussion about race, Kone said.\n"We didn't want to just have one person give a speech without any chance for discussion," Kone said. "We wanted this to be an open atmosphere where people could express their feelings about the issue. We can learn a lot more that way." \nThe event was organized by the Latinos Undios, the Student Coalition, Students for Justice in Palestine, the Coalition to Oppose War in Iraq, No Sweat and the Hip-Hop Congress.\nDietrich Willke, president of the Student Coalition, said one of the ideas behind the event was to present important political issues on a creative level that a wide range of students could relate to.\n"We thought we could get more students interested if we incorporated a lot of creativity in the event," Willke said. "We hoped students would feel more included and more willing to voice their feelings through expression."\nIU junior Sarah Graub was the first artist to take the stage. Incorporating imagery of American culture, Graub delivered a lyrical narrative poem about racism's involvement in society and the military. Graub said poetry is an alternative approach to talking about conflicts.\n"I want people to find creative ways of dealing with conflict," Graub said. "Resolutions don't always work, and I think it's important that people come together and talk about issues in a creative environment."\nGraduate student Amer Ahmed spoke about the way Americans look down upon Muslim-Americans in his hip-hop poem, "Resist." Ahmed said he wanted people to have the chance to hear from the discriminated perspective of a Muslim-American. Ahmed, a member of the Hip-Hop Congress, said using hip-hop culture is an effective way to get through to the younger generation. \n"Artistic expression reaches people in a way that a lecture can't," Ahmed said. "It has a youthful energy that a simple lecture doesn't have, and I think younger people really respond to that energy better."\nMany students in attendance found the event to be a refreshing change from the formal lectures usually held when societal matters are at hand.\n"I have a really strong interest in issues that involve race and the military," freshman Goodrich Gevaart said, "and I think art is an effective and unique way to convey information, especially politics."\nOne of the highlights of the evening was a speech from Keri Washington, the United Nations coordinator for the Indianapolis Peace and Justice center. Washington spoke about the "lack of black faces in high places" and the absurdity of violence.\n"Soldiers are just foolish," Washington said. "They march around wearing a uniform and carrying a gun, and they look like little kids. But that's exactly what they are."\nIn one of his closing remarks, Washington urged the students in the crowd to abandon the notion that violence is the best way to ameliorate crises -- a notion his generation feels victim to, he said.\n"You all must change the current human paradigm that consists of instinctive violence and racism," he said. "Conflict is a part of our human nature, but we can get past it without killing people"