The D-Squad and PREA present White Privilege 101: Race and Access at UW-Madison Wednesday February 23 7 - 8:30pm At the CCE in the basement of Gordon Commons PREA is a mostly-white student organization devoted to racial justice and white privilege education. We understand that too often people of color are expected to educate others about racism. Our workshops aim to reduce that burden by striving to provide a safe space to think more critically about how racism affects all of our lives in terms of access, involvements, personal ideologies and our campus efforts. All are welcome to attend! Check out our Facebook page for more info!: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=124547004234685 The Facebook page for the event: http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=189583827739661

Excellent way to learn more:

YOUTUBE 90 Sec. TRAILER: http://youtu.be/kVhxuitrEyo

EVENT INFORMATION:

What: "THE MESSAGE": True Accounts of Diversity Efforts & Being A Black Student On A Majority White Campus DEBUT SCREENING

When: Wednesday, February 23, 6-9pm

Time: 6pm-9pm - COMPLETE WITH SCREENING, LIGHT DINNER & DISCUSSION

Where: Witte Hall – Linne Lounge

DOCUMENTARY DESCRIPTION:

Emmy Award Winner Martinez White, a 2010 UW-Madison alumnus, in his debut documentary film explores and investigates diversity efforts & Black students' experiences on the BIG TEN University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. Through objective interviews complimented by a subjective storyline, the filmmaker gives the audience a personal peak into his internal thought processes as a Black Badger on the UW campus. This film takes a profound approach to determining how students of color's experiences on campus and in the classroom impacts their academic performance and feelings of inclusion being college students at a PWI and the implications those feelings have for the quality of the higher education system in the United States.

Through 15 convincing student interviews from Black & White students and 7 interviews from university administrators, which includes UW's Dean of Students, Chief Diversity Officer, Teacher Assistants, Professors and Department Chairs, this provocative, yet smart project is sure to spark healthy conversations about diversity on predominantly white campuses across the United States and how Black students are charged to succeed despite such circumstances.

Our Community Aspirations

Together we commit to our best efforts to achieve the following community aspirations:

* express truest feelings
* open dialogue - we agree to be offended gracefully
* don't use language with intention hurt
* what is said here stays here and what is learned here leaves here
* responsibility to share our disagreements
* meet people where they are at - be careful of judgement
* lets have fun
* ? ("group therapy esque style issue . . .")

More on this next week. Thoughts here heartily welcomed.

Responding To Triggers

This article, also available on the Learn@UW course page, offers questions at the bottom of the article. We may not get a chance to discuss these questions in class, so you may use this space to share things you may want to discuss.

Here are the questions they pose in that article:
• Which responses are most typical for you when you are triggered? As a targeted group member? As an advantaged group member?
• Are there differences in how you respond to triggers depending on the ism?
• Which responses would you like to add to your repertoire?
• Which responses do you use now and would like to stop using or use more
selectively?
• What blocks you from responding to triggers in ways that feel more effective?
• What can you do to expand your response repertoire?

Of course, some of these questions may be more for self-reflection, but sometimes people just want to be able to put out what's on their minds, and see what developments might come from it!

Discuss!

Habits That Block Conversation

You can find this interesting and helpful reading at the Learn@UW course site.

It's interesting to me (A.J.) how the article hits home on habits that I know I suffer from, but also things that frustrate me about conversations I've had. I don't know about all of you, but I also see the type of habits that block conversations happening at a larger scale as well, in politics, news articles, and on campus.

For some personal conversations, I sometimes want to hold many truths at once for a while. This is for honoring multiple perspectives, but also because I'm just not ready to claim one truth over another. I find that this doesn't always work very well. The other participants in the conversation often don't tend to understand that I'm not trying to advocate for a certain point, but that the topic of conversation itself is what I'm after. I find that with some extra effort though, I can use my knowledge of these habits, or tendencies to engage in real, authentic conversations. And, I find it rewarding and refreshing.

Leave a comment if you want to share your own thoughts on this article.

Course Survey Update: 21 of 23!

Hi folks!

As of right now, we have 21 responses, of 23 expected on our first class survey!!!

If you are one of those last two, please check your email for the link to the survey, or contact one of the facilitators for the link, so you can fill that out this week!

Thanks!