Author to talk about diversity at COMU event

It has been almost 20 years since the Commission on Multicultural Understanding first assembled faculty, students and staff at IU in hopes of fostering cultural understanding and eliminating racism around campus.\nTomorrow, COMU, along with Bloomington United, will feature guest speaker James W. Loewen at a campus retreat from 9 a.m. to noon Friday in the University Club at the Indiana Memorial Union. \nThe presentation will last until 11:30 a.m., said Barry Magee, the co-chair of the Retreat & Recognition committee. Lunch will then be offered to students along with a discussion and a Q-and-A session.\nLoewen’s workshop at the IMU, along with the other presentations he will be attending around Bloomington, will discuss the issues surrounding race and racial interaction both on campus and around the community.\n“The goal of (the retreat) is to get students, faculty and community members to interact and share personal experiences regarding race relations or living as a minority,” said Lillian Casillas, director of the Latino Cultural Center.\nBloomington United, a coalition of community members who promote educational opportunities, invited Loewen to do a series of workshops and presentations around the community.\nThis will include an appearance at a Monroe County School, where Loewen will discuss with students the issues that face students as minorities in Indiana.\nLoewen, who has been an expert consultant in more than 50 civil rights class action lawsuits, recently released his latest book, “Sundown Towns,” which illustrates the thousands of communities in America that he says excluded minorities throughout the century.\n“Loewen will act mainly as a facilitator at the workshop – the idea is to involve the audience as much as possible in the discussion,” Casillas said.\nIn his book, Loewen claims that 15 counties including Brown, Greene, Martin and Monroe have previously been “sundown towns” – communities where nonwhites were not allowed to pass through or live in after sundown. \nSigns or postings warning minorities not to be seen after sundown in certain areas were spotted in White County, Ind., as recently as 1996, according to Loewen’s Web site.\nThe purpose of COMU is to encourage programs and individuals to step up and fight against racism along with those designed to brings aid and bring the community close, according to the COMU Web site.\nEvery year the commission gives out awards to IU faculty, students and individuals who go out of their way to bridge the gap between student minorities and make IU a more welcoming campus.\nTo find out more about COMU, visit www.indiana.edu/~comu/.