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Schools in our district are spreading the awareness of cultural diversity. All school’s have different ways of doing this, some form clubs and host events to get their voice heard. Last night Feb. 17 from 7-8:30 p.m, a club at Francis Howell Central called CDC (Cultural Diversity Club) hosted for the first time Black, White, and Shades of Gray. Students, staff members, and Administration from all over the community attended the event, with around 60 people filling the auditorium.The night started out with music and quotes by a member of the club junior Steven Gibson and Assistant Principal of Central, Marty Davis. A big hit of the night was one of the videos they played called “Lunch Date”. The movie was only 15 minutes long but according to Gibson had an important message.
“Everything is not how it always seems,” Gibson said. “Everyone is equal even though it doesn’t seem like it all the time.”
A big part of the movie was that people in the world are always making assumptions about each other without getting to know one another. One group shared their feelings on the movie and said what they got out of it was “don’t judge a book by its cover”.
“A lot of races don’t hangout together in schools,” senior member Vichi Paillan said. “They have assumptions about each other, it keeps them from hanging out.”
To show what students think about cultural diversity in their schools, CDC held a discussion with the students who attended in an activity called Fish Bowl. One group started out in the middle of a circle and the other group on the outside, after answering questions they switched. Questions varied but students were able to share their views on cultural diversity.
One question was What do you like to be called?
“I like to me called African American so I can stand up for my people,” girl participant in the middle circle said.
How do you feel you’re represented in the history books?
“Look at AP classes, you have European and World history but black history is left out of curriculum,” boy participant in the middle circle said.
How do you feel about black history month?
“We learn the negative things about Koreans, Chinese…, and there is so many good things out there we don’t learn about,” after discussing a girl participant in the middle circle said.
Through many questions similar to this the group was able to discuss their views on cultural diversity and show their support. Hollenbeck Middle School teacher Don Fingers thinks that discussing is a great way to support cultural diversity.
“[Kids should go to meetings like this] for knowledge,” Fingers said. “They need experience and they need to hear views other than their own. Groups like this may go under different names but the goal is all the same.”
The club hopes to have another Black, White, and shades of Gray night but next year they might choose to change it up a little bit by maybe having smaller discussions so they can have a series. CDC and many other clubs such as S.W.E.E.T (sweet students working to ensure equal treatment) from Hollenbeck are all out their making a difference.
“Every little bit you try to do makes an impact,” Davis said. “Every school needs to find out where they are and take baby steps.”
