Stetson University hosted a flash panel at the Rinker auditorium in the LBC after the recent events at the University of Missouri, causing students and faculty to speak out on diversity and inclusion on campus.
The panel focused on creating a community discussion about race in higher education. Between all the panelists, they addressed the student protests at the MU, history of white supremacy, and the effectiveness of protests overall. Students, faculty, and staff from Stetson University’s Deland Campus, as well as Stetson University College of Law at Gulfport, Florida joined in on the conversation during the question session.
After the panel, the audience was pretty vocal about their personal thoughts. Veronica Faison, a sophomore at Stetson University and MSC Chair for the Black Student Association, thought it was a great conversation to have. However, she did not think it was enough. She believed the panel was going around in circles. “It was just sort of empty talk, sometimes. We are talking about it by having a conversation, but we were not doing anything to actually fix the problems,” Faison said.
Faison came to Stetson looking for a small student environment, but sometimes, the occasional microagressions can steal that community feeling. “'You are pretty for a black girl' or 'you don’t sound like other black people,'” said Faison. "Those are the typical comments."
Luis Melecio-Zambrano, a junior at Stetson University and President of Unidos, a Hispanic organization at Stetson University, shared a similar disappointment. “I think there was a lot of good information about race and it’s important to have that information, but there was not a lot of response in terms of what we can do to face that problem on this campus,” Melecio-Zambrano said.
During the panel, Melecio-Zambrano was one of the many students asking questions. He asked questions concerning employment bias and racism on campus, but none of his questions were answered to his liking. For Melecio-Zambrano, it is extremely important for people to have the willingness to listen. But sometimes, that can be hard. “A lot of times when we talk about diversity and how important it is, we get pointed to tokens," said Melecio-Zambrano. “It’s hard to speak openly and not appear defensive.”
Currently, Stetson demographics show a low percentage of diversity, with 8.13 percent of students being Black or African American and 13.81 percent being Hispanic/Latino, compared to the 65.26 percent that are White. The flash panel has raised questions about how Stetson University can change the gap between minorities and whites on campus.
“I would really like to see educational programs for the employers of the school, that they understand these statistics and that they understand hopefully the implicit racism in society and in them,” Melecio-Zambrano said.
Pamela Cappas-Toro, an assistant professor of World Languages and Culture at Stetson University, believes race in higher education is a complex issue, but an important one to discuss. “We talk a lot about other regions of the world, but there is a huge silence about Latin America.”
Cappas-Toro is a huge advocate of bringing other voices, other perspectives, and curricula that will promote diversity and inclusion on campus. She thought that the panel was a good start, but “diversity implies not only bringing bodies, but also how do you incorporate different bodies and different ideas into an institution."
The panel has also sparked conversation about bringing historically black fraternities and sororities on campus. “It is a place where minorities can come together, a safe space, which is something Panhellenic Greek life can’t offer right now,” Faison said. Black fraternities and sororities will give minorities more options to get involved on campus. “I think that if the administration has some type of solidarity with minority students and shows that people should be hold accountable for their hate speech, it will help this community insurmountably. If students feel that someone is on their side, it makes a huge difference,” Faison said.
Stetson University is currently looking into a follow-up panel. “I want this conversation to keep going, because it is definitely not finished,” Melecio-Zambrano said.
