Cultural center provides forum

An event tonight at the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center will give members of the IU community a chance to exchange dialogue about diversity and multicultural issues across campus.

Diversity Day 2011 is themed “Conversation: Diversity, Ethnicity and Internationalism.”

Carolyn Calloway-Thomas, professor of communications and culture and IU-Bloomington Diversity

Committee chair, said the choice of theme is a reflection of recent incidents abroad and on campus.

“Most crucially we were motivated by the events in Tunisia, Egypt and in Yemen,” Calloway-Thomas said.

Campus events that occurred last fall, including anti-Semitic vandalism and an attack on Asian students, also “animated” that choice, Calloway-Thomas said. 

The “dialogue-in” portion of the event will feature 75 minutes of roundtable discussion from administrators, faculty, staff and students, Calloway-Thomas said. Participants will attempt to assess topic issues and provide opinions.

Calloway-Thomas said the goal of this discussion will be a greater understanding of the current state of issues surrounding diversity, ethnicity and internationalism, as well as a feeling for the “civic climate” at IU.

The Diversity Committee will use information gleaned from the discussion in its annual report, Calloway-Thomas said, and student input is vital. Any interested student is welcome to attend.

Diversity Day will be from 6 to 8 p.m. today in the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center’s Grand Hall.