Christopher Newport University's Pi Lamda Phi fraternity put on the "Wall of Prejudice" event to show awareness of and fight prejudice. The event, primarily organized by senior Alex Szymanski, has been in the works for about a year now. The idea of the wall is that students may write things that their loved ones or themselves have been called that were types of prejudice. Other chapters at various other schools have built their own walls with a successful outcome as well.
After the first night, they had to repaint the wall, as it had been vandalized. The fraternity managed to turn this setback into a learning experience, however, by showing how hurtful words and actions can be. They painted over the vandalism and encouraged the continued participation of students the next day. The wall stood as a symbol of the prejudices and hate that our campus and loved ones have had to suffer.
"So far I have heard a mixture of reactions from the wall, including shock, sadness and even feelings of disgust," Pi Lam brother Brendan Player commented on the event. "In my mind, many should have these strong emotional responses to the wall. I know I do. But the reason I feel the way I do is because my peers have been called these terrible things. The great thing about being adults in a collegiate environment is that we are not shielded from the world. We get the opportunity to learn about and even experience the best and worst society has to offer due to our access to information and our desire to learn. When you look upon the Wall of Prejudice, you should see the ignorance and hatred that people just like you have had to face. If this doesn’t facilitate sensitive societal conversation, I don’t know what will. I am overjoyed by the amount of participation my fellow Captains have had and the overwhelming support for this historic CNU event. I hope everyone will continue to come out and join in the fight against prejudice, not just as individuals, but as a campus of accepting, moral and open-minded students and faculty."
After taking down the Wall of Prejudice, the brothers of Pi Lam were set to construct a Wall of Hope in its place. Instead of writing mean and prejudicial things that have been said to them, students were supposed to write things that give them hope for a brighter and more accepting world in the future.
However, due to the storms that have and are still affecting our area this week, the timing just isn't right to create the Wall of Hope now, and the event may be recreated to the fullest in the future. This event ties directly into Pi Lamda Phi's philanthropy, The Elimination of Prejudice. Their mission is to "set the conditions for sensitive societal conversations to take place." We can't eliminate prejudice in a week. We have to take it one step at a time, and Pi Lamda Phi took one huge step.
