Monday, March 12, marks the beginning of SGA’s Diversity Week, SGA Diversity Affairs’ second major event of the 2011-2012 school year.
The focus of the week — which will run from Monday to Thursday — is to expose students to the different types of racial, cultural and social diversity present around campus and within the community.
“We want to encourage students to become aware about people different from them,” Brittany Williams, assistant director of Diversity Affairs, said. “All students will be able to relate. Diversity Week allows people to become more aware about that.”
Monday is titled “Archie Bunker’s Neighborhood” and will be held in the Reese Hall West Multipurpose Room at 7:30 p.m. As part of Monday’s activity, students will be subjected to various stereotypes that people are confronted with on a daily basis, both on campus at UT and within the community.
Tuesday is titled “What’s Your Status?” and will be held in UC 221 at 5 p.m. Students will be shown a movie detailing the different socioeconomic statuses present within America. Diversity Affairs wants to emphasize through this night that diversity does not just include cultural and ethnic differences, but also economical differences.
On Wednesday, an event called “The Game of Life: Walking in my Shoes” will be held in HSS 71 at 6 p.m. Students will be thrust into an interactive game in which they are asked thought-provoking questions about how it would be to live an alternative lifestyle.
Thursday will be “Religious Diversity” day. Held in the UC Ballroom at 5:30 p.m., students will learn about different faiths around campus and the surrounding community.
“The night will be focused on educating students on different faiths in hopes of dispelling stereotypes, reviewing misconceptions and working toward building closer ‘religious relationships’ at UT,” Marcus Jones, assistant director of Diversity Affairs, said.
Coming off a very successful International Week last semester, Diversity Affairs is very excited about hosting this week around campus and encourages all students to attend the week’s events.
“It’s important to learn about different perspectives that raise awareness that make up the different cultures we live in,” Chris Porter, junior and Diversity Affairs member, said. “If we know about our own culture, we know about the real world. To be successful, you have to know how to work with different people that come from different backgrounds.”
The aim of Diversity Affairs is to inform students about the importance of understanding the diversity in their individual communities. It hopes that through its efforts, students will gain a better understanding of the world around them and will embrace the differences that make our generation unique.
“Our committee has put an exceeding amount of time and effort into Diversity Week, and we are excited to highlight several of the many ways UT puts the ‘T’ in diversity,” Jones said.
