Building a tolerant campus, starting with the dorms

As concerned students with different racial and cultural backgrounds, we recognize the diversity on campus and see a need for a more open and safe community. There is a need for systemic, expert-facilitated anti-racist training workshops for proctors and resident assistants (RAs). These leaders will, in turn, educate their residents and peers, beginning a cycle of understanding and open dialogue. Anti-racist training is a necessary step towards building a more tolerant campus.

The presence of racism on campus has been strongly felt in the residence halls. Recent incidents, such as the racist graffiti found in South Hall and Capen House last year, are only the tip of the ice berg. Although such incidents are the most visible on campus, more covert forms of racism permeate social interactions. In dorms, where students should feel safe and accepted, this racism should be confronted and dealt with. RAs and proctors, as authority figures in the dorms, should be responsible for bringing these issues to light and dealing with them.

We feel that it is imperative for people with authority and responsibility, such as RAs and proctors, to be conscious of a potentially divisive racial atmosphere. ResLife recruits RAs to build community, be a resource for their peers, and create "multicultural programs and interactions." To fulfill this role, we think it is important to recognize the fact that race places an integral role in our everyday life and interactions. Without the adequate background that they could receive through anti-racist training, we cannot expect them to respond appropriately should a problem arise. All too often, issues of race are overlooked and with this training, RAs and proctors would be more prepared to deal with them.

The training workshops should be run by a diverse group of people with backgrounds in anti-racist coalition building, who have knowledge of the history and consequences of race in our society. This coalition should include outside experts working with professors and students of ethnic/racial studies, from various racial backgrounds. After this training, RAs and proctors should be aware of their own socially-constructed racial identities and how that affects their interactions with residents.

The focus of the workshop should be two-fold: initiating and facilitating preventative programming and training for interventions. The goal of the training is to foster an open and safe living environment by preventing incidents of racial intolerance from occurring and enabling RAs and proctors to deal with incidents when they arise. Often incidents of racial intolerance can be prevented and it is our hope that this training will set a precedent for open communication and will help address issues of race which are often overlooked. By encouraging the Tufts community to bridge color lines and expand their comfort zones, we will all be working towards a more accepting and tolerant community.

It is necessary to emphasize the importance of institutionalizing anti-racist training to assure that leaders of our community are properly prepared to prevent and deal with issues as they arise. It is not enough to think that a one-day workshop will cure racism at Tufts. We need regular, systemic implementation of diversity programming in order to keep the dialogue on racism open and visible.

Eloise Russo is a sophomore who has yet to declare a major; Lorraine Sensenig is a senior majoring in International Relations and Child Development; Kelly Condit is a senior majoring in American Studies and the Asian American Culture Representative on the TCU Senate.