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Wednesday, September 06, 2017
CMU Drama Students Take A Stand Against Hate
Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama: “Taking A Stand Against Hate,” an inclusivity forum in response to the events that occurred in Charlottesville in August, took place Sept. 1, in the lobby of the Purnell Center for the Arts.
9 comments:
Anabel Shuckhart
said...
I was so happy to have gotten to attend this meeting on diversity and social justice last Friday, not only were each person's contributions so powerful and unique, but also because it reminded me about just how important it is to be in an arts school surrounded by strong and creative people at this moment in time. There is nothing that feels safer right now than being in a space where people can talk about their struggles, identity, and responses to fear through art, and I believe that if we keep sharing these things not only with each other in the School of Drama, but with the larger world outside, that we can speak more powerfully than the people at the head of our country can right now.
This makes me so happy to be apart of the CMU drama community. It showed me just how special this community is all of the people who contributed and showed up. The community not only expressing themselves and feeling safe to do so but the way and the artistry in doing so was and is amazing every single day. We all have things to say and we need to make them loud and clear especially in times like today where the voice of the few can carry many.
In being fortunate enough to be a student at CMU, I was able to attend this event. While I was there and people were speaking and performing there was a point where things hit me. I went into a phased position but not because I was tired. This happened as a response to the powerful speaking and wonderful performances going on. They moved me to put it shortly. They moved me emotionally, they moved me intellectually and for that brief moment I had come to a better understanding of art. I knew it was powerful and I knew it was important but to see the combination of speaking and art really strained a difference. So, from that moment, I had while sitting there listening to a performance, I came to empower a motive that I knew was already there but not exactly sure how it worked: Artists are the worlds changers and influencers. We are not just entertainers or artists but society's empowerers and I feel we have the responsibility to influence change whenever possible. This makes me proud to be a CMU student and especially so in being apart of the school of Drama as I know they are already heading in that direction and have been for a while.
I am so proud to go to a school who takes the time to address issues that they know are not only affecting the world, but their students as well. All of the speakers at this gathering had something important and moving to add to the thoughts and hearts of the students listening. One of my favorite parts of the gathering was the story of a student who is from Charlotteville. This young man took a stand through his art. His mural brought comfort and peace back to his town. I loved hearing how when he felt like there was nothing he could do, he used his art. Another one of my favorite parts of the conference was the performance of another students original wrap about how he was born. It was so well done and moving and so inherently his own but still touched the hearts of others. Overall, this gathering reminded me of how lucky I am to be in a community where everyone's voice is valued.
I feel so lucky to have witnessed and been apart of this meeting and this community as a whole. The people who talked and sang were inspiring and motivational. I have family in Houston who had to evacuate their homes and lives, the whole week had been pretty stressful and for me it was really assuring to know that the drama department as a whole was looking out for me and for those who are struggling more. The most inspirational part was the fact that our teachers are pushing us to change the world with our art and theater. And after seeing what people in this program can do with just one speech or song, I really believe we can do something different with our artwork.
I'm absolutely honored to have served on the committee as a student rep for over a year. Starting this committee is a big, very important first step and I believe everyone on the committee understands that we must keep moving forward and making changes. We need to put words into actions. It is not an easy task by any stretch of the word, from deciding what to focus on, what our mission statement is, planning for launching, making semester initiatives, inviting guest speakers. Sometimes we had meetings on weekend, in the morning, and lasted for three hours. It is humbling to see how both faculty and student members are committed to this and taking their role extremely seriously. In the event of hatred and bigotry, as a community, it’s heartening to see that people take time out of their life to pause, gather, reflect, share and make determinations. There are many of us who were directly impacted by either the horrible hurricane or the shocking man-made disaster in Charlottesville. Having this gathering, hopefully, really made students, faculty and staff feel like CMU SOD is a safe zone with caring people ready to reach out to help and stand up for justice.
I am always so moved by the openness and acceptance within the School of Drama. I am so grateful to go to a university that is actively putting time and resources towards inclusivity. In the future I hope that the Diversity and Inclusion committee continues to push for their initiatives and that there will be opportunities for the school as a whole to get involved. Obviously we are just in the beginning stages of this program, but I think it has a lot of potential to do a lot of good. One area that I think we could really improve in is diversifying our design and production classes. It's no secret that our program has a lot of room to grow in this regard and I believe that in order to do that we should be putting our efforts towards getting people from all across the country to apply. I think we're at a point now where we have to opportunity to make some real change, and I really believe that with a lot of hard work we can.
This meeting was incredibly moving and reassuring to me. I am so glad that I ended up at a school that shares my beliefs and morals, mostly because I believe that the arts were made for times like these when we encounter such ignorance and hate in the world. I think art is the only way to conquer these things, and I think artists need to find the type of community that the SoD at CMU has extended towards us. Through this community, we can find the courage to fight. The way each speaker was so direct is inspiring to me, and leaves no doubt in my mind that I'm surrounded with morally good people. What a relief!
Being in attendance at this meeting, I found it truly uplifting to be surrounded by so many people who feel so passionately about creating a safe space for everyone and allowing art to push the boundaries of comfort. What happened in Charlottesville was truly horrific, and the fact that we have a community of people within Carnegie Mellon, and more specifically the School of Drama, who understand our job as students, artists, and innovators to fight for justice through our work is inspiring. The Diversity and Inclusion committee seems to have a lot of plans that I cannot wait to watch flourish over this year.
9 comments:
I was so happy to have gotten to attend this meeting on diversity and social justice last Friday, not only were each person's contributions so powerful and unique, but also because it reminded me about just how important it is to be in an arts school surrounded by strong and creative people at this moment in time. There is nothing that feels safer right now than being in a space where people can talk about their struggles, identity, and responses to fear through art, and I believe that if we keep sharing these things not only with each other in the School of Drama, but with the larger world outside, that we can speak more powerfully than the people at the head of our country can right now.
This makes me so happy to be apart of the CMU drama community. It showed me just how special this community is all of the people who contributed and showed up. The community not only expressing themselves and feeling safe to do so but the way and the artistry in doing so was and is amazing every single day. We all have things to say and we need to make them loud and clear especially in times like today where the voice of the few can carry many.
In being fortunate enough to be a student at CMU, I was able to attend this event. While I was there and people were speaking and performing there was a point where things hit me. I went into a phased position but not because I was tired. This happened as a response to the powerful speaking and wonderful performances going on. They moved me to put it shortly. They moved me emotionally, they moved me intellectually and for that brief moment I had come to a better understanding of art. I knew it was powerful and I knew it was important but to see the combination of speaking and art really strained a difference. So, from that moment, I had while sitting there listening to a performance, I came to empower a motive that I knew was already there but not exactly sure how it worked: Artists are the worlds changers and influencers. We are not just entertainers or artists but society's empowerers and I feel we have the responsibility to influence change whenever possible. This makes me proud to be a CMU student and especially so in being apart of the school of Drama as I know they are already heading in that direction and have been for a while.
I am so proud to go to a school who takes the time to address issues that they know are not only affecting the world, but their students as well. All of the speakers at this gathering had something important and moving to add to the thoughts and hearts of the students listening. One of my favorite parts of the gathering was the story of a student who is from Charlotteville. This young man took a stand through his art. His mural brought comfort and peace back to his town. I loved hearing how when he felt like there was nothing he could do, he used his art. Another one of my favorite parts of the conference was the performance of another students original wrap about how he was born. It was so well done and moving and so inherently his own but still touched the hearts of others. Overall, this gathering reminded me of how lucky I am to be in a community where everyone's voice is valued.
I feel so lucky to have witnessed and been apart of this meeting and this community as a whole. The people who talked and sang were inspiring and motivational. I have family in Houston who had to evacuate their homes and lives, the whole week had been pretty stressful and for me it was really assuring to know that the drama department as a whole was looking out for me and for those who are struggling more. The most inspirational part was the fact that our teachers are pushing us to change the world with our art and theater. And after seeing what people in this program can do with just one speech or song, I really believe we can do something different with our artwork.
I'm absolutely honored to have served on the committee as a student rep for over a year. Starting this committee is a big, very important first step and I believe everyone on the committee understands that we must keep moving forward and making changes. We need to put words into actions. It is not an easy task by any stretch of the word, from deciding what to focus on, what our mission statement is, planning for launching, making semester initiatives, inviting guest speakers. Sometimes we had meetings on weekend, in the morning, and lasted for three hours. It is humbling to see how both faculty and student members are committed to this and taking their role extremely seriously.
In the event of hatred and bigotry, as a community, it’s heartening to see that people take time out of their life to pause, gather, reflect, share and make determinations. There are many of us who were directly impacted by either the horrible hurricane or the shocking man-made disaster in Charlottesville. Having this gathering, hopefully, really made students, faculty and staff feel like CMU SOD is a safe zone with caring people ready to reach out to help and stand up for justice.
I am always so moved by the openness and acceptance within the School of Drama. I am so grateful to go to a university that is actively putting time and resources towards inclusivity. In the future I hope that the Diversity and Inclusion committee continues to push for their initiatives and that there will be opportunities for the school as a whole to get involved. Obviously we are just in the beginning stages of this program, but I think it has a lot of potential to do a lot of good. One area that I think we could really improve in is diversifying our design and production classes. It's no secret that our program has a lot of room to grow in this regard and I believe that in order to do that we should be putting our efforts towards getting people from all across the country to apply. I think we're at a point now where we have to opportunity to make some real change, and I really believe that with a lot of hard work we can.
This meeting was incredibly moving and reassuring to me. I am so glad that I ended up at a school that shares my beliefs and morals, mostly because I believe that the arts were made for times like these when we encounter such ignorance and hate in the world. I think art is the only way to conquer these things, and I think artists need to find the type of community that the SoD at CMU has extended towards us. Through this community, we can find the courage to fight. The way each speaker was so direct is inspiring to me, and leaves no doubt in my mind that I'm surrounded with morally good people. What a relief!
Being in attendance at this meeting, I found it truly uplifting to be surrounded by so many people who feel so passionately about creating a safe space for everyone and allowing art to push the boundaries of comfort. What happened in Charlottesville was truly horrific, and the fact that we have a community of people within Carnegie Mellon, and more specifically the School of Drama, who understand our job as students, artists, and innovators to fight for justice through our work is inspiring. The Diversity and Inclusion committee seems to have a lot of plans that I cannot wait to watch flourish over this year.
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