Breaking Out of the Comfort Zone

       Last month a good friend of mine held a diversity forum for her Honors Colloquium course that focused on race. To my pleasure and the pleasure of my fellow PINK sisters, we were given the opportunity to collaborate with the forum facilitators.

       It was clear no one was comfortable enough to just pour their hearts out to one another at the start. Even the prepared questions prompted to dry responses. I even found myself answering questions just to fill the dead air. Despite their good intentions, the forum facilitators didn’t seem to be accomplishing much.

       It wasn’t until my friend Abeje, the group facilitator, asked us if we feel we have to change the way we act in order to fit into a society where the standards are based on white ideals. I personally can attest to a number of times when I’ve done things to appease people in my surroundings. Even things as petty as not wearing a shower cap when I walk to the bathroom so my suitemates (who happened to be white) wouldn’t see me.

That is when something started to click into my head. WHY is it that I can’t walk 15 steps to the bathroom in my shower cap? Why can’t my PINK sister walk to class with her hair wrapped? Why do we even buy UGGS? As we continued to share our experiences, the consensus of the ladies seemed to be that we do these things to ‘fit in’.

Sometimes I feel like society has turned its head away from the fact that prejudice still exist. And one of the most commonly used phrases I’ve heard to justify this is, “I don’t see color, I only see people”. As commendable as this may sound, it falls right into the same pool of prejudice along with the inventors of the Grandfather Clause and Jim Crow Laws.

       The fact is that WE ARE DIFFERENT. Different in color, culture, experiences, and the list goes on! So to void any acknowledgement of our differences is no less ignorant as exploiting them. The key is to ACCEPT and APPRECIATE the differences we all have as HUMAN BEINGS.

       I could honestly go on and on about how moving this forum was for me. But to prevent myself from going on a cyber rant I will the leave you with the moral of my story. We have more in common than we think. And if we could just look past the superficial and appreciate the person’s actual essence, society would be far better off. I truly believe that!
 

       As a multicultural student, I strongly believe it is the small, persistent steps that matter. So break out of your comfort zone!  Talk to someone new! Make it a goal to bridge the gap and close these cultural stereotypes we have of one another! You can’t change the mind of the world before you change the mind of your neighbor.

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Tyler Curry, Contributing Writer, is currently an undergraduate student at the University of Rhode Island pursing a study in Journalism.

The Mechanics of Time

                                                                  
       It’s just about that time of year again when families and friends gather to celebrate the holiday season. People travel far and long to reunite with their families and students head home for the holidays. The holidays are a special time that only happens once a year. Since the bulk of the holiday season is toward the end of the year, I often reflect on the year and what I was doing the following year during this time. This time last year, I was nearing the end of my first semester in college. I remember counting down the cold long days to the end of the semester, and to my liberation from URI for a month.


        Having the thoughts of my prior year cross my mind, I became astonished at the idea that I am almost done with my sophomore year of college. Toward the end of my high school career, when college became more of a reality to me, the college graduates around me always told me that college goes by fast. I never thought that they were lying to me, but never did I think that I’d be at the end of my sophomore year in what would have seemed like a month’s time. I guess that was the point of those college graduates telling me about college and how fast it can go by. So that I wouldn’t take my time for granted like they may have done.


        Time stops for no man or woman, which is the reason why it would be wise for everyone to try and make the most of what time we have. During my freshmen year, I couldn’t wait for the end of the spring semester so I could get as far as possible from URI. Reflecting on my freshmen year today, it doesn’t seem like it was all bad. And although I have had a hectic fall semester this year, I did have my share of good times. The future is bound to bring more frustrations, especially on the campus of URI. Although, in the future I’d like to try my best to enjoy my experience, because it will soon be over; and these are times I will never be able to get back.


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Stefan Correia, Staff Writer, is currently a sophomore undergraduate student at the University of Rhode Island studying Economics.

Flashback!

Take a look at some moments from the 7 Continents Culture Couture Show from Diversity Week 2010!

'Tis the Season

     This is the time of the year where you can smell the winter in the air. The leaves begin to show their deep red hues, and the thick wool coats come out of the closet. The holiday music begins to grace the radio frequencies and retail stores start to stock their shelves with gift-able merchandise wrapped in eye-catching ribbon. Amongst the seemingly decrease in nature's thermostat and the chaotic scene of the shopping centers, it's important to remember what this time of the year is all about.

     I'm the type of person who finds myself reminiscing about my childhood adventures and precious moments that happened way back when or even last week. I look through photo albums, notes, and little nick-knacks and sometimes find myself wishing that I was still close to that person, that I still spoke with that person. Life changes and people move away, relationships fray at the ends, and people fall apart. It happens. But I also believe that things happen for a reason. Things fall apart so you can find something new. People leave your life to make room for the new ones that come in. And every person that you encounter leaves you with something--may that be a lesson learned, a memory to cherish, or just an ear when you needed one the most. Everyone we meet impacts and affects us in some way, shape, or form, and we in turn do the same for those who we encounter. Those moments are special moments that are often unexpected and quick to pass by. 

     Time is quick to pass by. Words that are unspoken, remain unspoken, and unheard. Permanence is only determined by relative time. If someone makes an impact in your life, I think it is important to acknowledge that. 'Tis the season for family, friends, and loved ones. 'Tis the season to give thanks--thanks for the food that graces the table each night, thanks for the roommates who listen to you rant about the dramas of college, thanks for the friends who accept you for your quirkiness, thanks for the strangers who hold the door open for you, thanks for each day that you are able to laugh, cry, love, and smile.


     It doesn't take much for someone to touch my heart, and it doesn't take much to acknowledge someone for doing just that. So, I will start off by thanking you, dear reader. Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read what I have to say. Thank you for taking the time to appreciate the product of all our hard work. If you do anything after reading this post, I hope you take some time out of your day to thank at least one person who has impacted your life, in any degree, for the better.

     Kindness is contagious. Spread it.


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Holly Tran, Staff Writer, is currently a sophomore at the University of Rhode Island pursing a major in Biological Sciences.
    
    

"For Colored Girls": A Review

       How much power do we have as individuals over the relationships we keep? Whether it is between men and women or friends, we all tend to submit in some way or another. After watching Tyler Perry’s For Colored Girls for the URI Multicultural Center Dialogue Group, my eyes opened to the different ways we, as women, friends, daughters, sisters, and peers, submit to the pressures of the relationships that we carry. This movie showed the extremes that women go through with their marriages and the relationships that they keep. Now I am much more aware of the different power struggles that I have with friends and family members. 
       
       After watching the movie with the group, we were asked to sit and talk about how we felt about it; and to be quite honest, I was not ready. My mind was racing through the situations that were portrayed before me--"What would I have done if put in the situations presented? Have I ever focused on myself and not taken the opportunity to make a major difference?"--All this while processing the poetry that resounds within my mind today. A few days later, I was able to put the array of emotions, questions, and thoughts I had together. It was a truly enlightening and empowering feeling. 


       With friends, we either submit to the decisions made by the group without much of an argument, or are the ones making the decision for the group. In the case of male-female relationships, women tend (note I said the word ‘tend’) to submit to the needs of their counterpart. After watching the extreme situations that the characters of the movie went through I realized that everyone experiences this on one level or another. Despite the severity of the experiences (violent or not), we need to be aware that these issues affect us, and we all need to find the power to be who we are and have equality within the relationships that we keep. 


       I would recommend that everyone to go and see this movie, I plan on reading Ntozake Shange’s book from which the movie was based to gain more insight into the power we all have within us and I hope you get as much from this as I had!

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Addendum: FOR COLORED GIRLS brings to the screen Ntozake Shange's Obie Award-winning play, "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf," a poetic exploration of what is to be of color and a female in this world. --Rotten Tomatoes Synopsis

The URI Multicultural Center Sustained Dialogue Project meets every Monday at 6PM at the Multicultural Center. This is an open event where all individuals are welcome to join in.

Denise Dujon, Staff Writer, is a senior undergraduate student at the University of Rhode Island majoring in Biology.

Multicultural Center e-Journal: Request for Submissions!

The MCC e-Journal is a digital bi-annual publication (one issue each semester), that features artistic and expressive work from university students, campus staff, and guest contributors. The idea is that one theme/topic will be proposed and individuals can then interpret that in their own way—may this be in the form of photos, drawings, poetry, narrative stories, collages, et cetera. The possibilities are endless!

 Fall/Winter Publication Topic: How has community service helped to make you the person you are today?

This semester's e-Journal will be unveiled in celebration of MLK Week. The theme of service will resonate through a collection of creative original works in the honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s legacy.

DUE: Friday, January 14^th, 2011 at 9:00AM

Submissions formats: .DOC, .JPEG, .PDF

Submit all entries via e-mail to: multiculturalcenter.uri@gmail.com

Check back on the MCC webpage to see on-going developments!

And the Kid Cudi Raffle Tickets Go to...

  Congratulations to our 14th Annual Diversity Week winner! 


  Jacob Wigton, an undeclared freshman, won a pair of tickets to 
  see Kid Cudi perform at the Ryan Center. 


  The raffle was a random drawing based off of Diversity Week 
  workshop registration and attendance.

Wrapping Up Diversity Week: Genomics in Retrospect

       Every year the Multicultural Center holds a variety of workshops and events in a span of one week. Diversity Week, as it is called, aims to unite the campus community in celebration of cultural diversity, identity, and values. The single week draws in hundreds of students, faculty, and community members--all gathered to see dances from other continents, learn about a blood transfusion process, or even to get a tour of the campus botanical gardens!

   This year marked the 14th annual commemoration of Diversity Week, collaborated in part with the university's College of Environmental and Life Sciences. The resulting list of workshops was a treat for a science admirers and for the curious at heart.

       I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Duana Fullwiley, a guest speaker for the Honors Colloquium, over dinner sponsored by the Honors Program, before attending her presentation in Edwards Auditorium. She was very knowledgeable and personable, fielding student questions on the logistics behind genomics and specificities. Her perspective on the issue soon became evident—race, she said, is the product of our social categorization. In science and medicine, race forces pieces together that do not necessarily fit. BiDil, she cites as an example, is a pharmaceutical drug openly marketed and developed for African American patients with heart disease. She raises questions on why this drug is listed primarily for African Americans and what it means for the future of our health care. She continued to elaborate that race, by scientific standards, is established by using a scale put together by a select group of people that decided the determination of each race is dependent upon the presence of a fixed percentage of arbitrary genes. Someone may self-identify themself as a certain race, but their genetic make-up could classify them as otherwise. Race, Fullwiley argues, tries to form a correlation between individuals in hopes of creating a one-fit solution. Instead, she suggests that geneticists should divert their focus on matters such as finding specific genes for medical conditions and developing medications catered to work on those molecular sites. By this method, she believes that pharmaceuticals will rear better results—using a more scientific approach rather than the shifty lens of race.

       Thursday evening Dr. Esteban González Burchard held a related presentation in Chafee where he expressed his thoughts on the matter, stating that race—or ancestry, as he preferred to call it—is a vital tool in science and a stable foundation in medicine. He showed a myriad of graphs and stated that ancestry has been shown to have a large influence in our lives—including the determination of our life partners. Marriage, he said, is not primarily determined by love. We pick our partners based on socioeconomic standards, their level education of education, and how similar they are to us. He added that recent research shows that ancestry may even play a larger role in spousal choice, directing the audience attention to charts showing a high percentage of Latin American couples who resided in New York. He suggests that this number has more to do with ancestry than with emotional ties, et cetera. Burchard believes that ancestry is meant to serve as a starting point. Although the ultimate goal is to compare genetic markers, it would be far too costly to sequence the genome of every single person on earth at the rate of five thousand dollars a person. The more economical choice, rather, would be to have a controlled sampling of certain populations in order to build a baseline. He briefly references to standards behind race classification, stating that from a few continents, locations were chosen in which respective inhabitants’ genes served as the definition for their “race” or “ancestry.” Thus, race in scientific standards, would then be defined by a small sampling of the entire world population. Burchard goes on to state that ancestry is a difficult spectrum because individuals may self-identify themselves as a certain race that does not correlate with scientific standards, making prescribed medications ineffective since they are tailored to a specific group. This leads to a high incidence of illness and failure rates. Burchard concludes his presentation saying that ancestry is a resourceful tool in the field of genetic research and should garner more time and attention from the scientific world.

       Dr. Fullwiley and Dr. Burchard both presented great points and potential directions on where genomics and medicine should venture next. They raised ethical and theoretical questions our society needs to consider in an age of advancing technology and developing medicine. Does the future of medicine lie within our genes? Does genomic sequencing open doors for discrimination or violate one's privacy? We still have a ways to go, but the what ifs could very well be a reality sooner than we think.

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Holly Tran, Staff Writer, is currently a sophomore at the University of Rhode Island pursing a major in Biological Sciences.

Student Diversity Week Reflection

       For Diversity Week, I attended “Transfusion-Free Medicine and Surgery” on Wednesday, from 2:00-2:50. In this presentation, the speaker, a representative from Rhode Island Hospital who is also the program manager, Kevin Wright, introduced ideas and ways that surgeries can be done to limit the unnecessary use of blood transfusions among patients. 


       Blood transfusion is a process that requires the transfer of usually donated blood to a patient during surgery, where blood loss is high. Some ways to limit the amount of blood transfusions that occur include:

• Drawing blood prior to surgery in order to replenish the body with clean, waste-free blood
• Using blood-capturing machines that capture the blood that is lost during surgery 
• Using tubes to fill bags with the blood
• Checking the hemoglobin count of the patient, to make sure that it they actually require a blood transfusion. Some doctors feel it is necessary to give the patient a transfusion, however it is usually not required.

       I learned that we as citizens and essentially patients need to realize that the blood we receive during operations and surgeries is not always clean. Donated blood is not always clean, as they contain wastes from the donor’s bloodstream that is potentially dangerous to the receiving patient. Donations of blood will not always be around, and we as patients need to realize that this is the time to take the steps and precautions to stay as healthy as possible during surgeries and procedural operations.


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Hashem Shehadeh, Guest Contributor, is currently a freshman at the University of Rhode Island pursuing a major in Biological Sciences.