Posted: 05/02/07

Hurtful words spark renewed awareness
A new campaign from the senior class at St. Michael’s

Kristen Smoragiewicz | contributing writer
ksmoragiewicz@smcvt.edu

On a typical party night at St. Michael’s College shortly after spring break, senior class president Lauren Remmes was making rounds while on duty as the apartment community adviser. As she was walking through the 300s Townhouses, she was stopped by three distraught students.

Seniors Arly Scully and Lauren Remmes started the campaign as a way to combat negative actions on campus and in the hopes that it would be the beginning of a legacy left behind by the class of 2007. (Kristin Smoragiewicz, photo)

The students said they were very upset because a fellow classmate was intoxicated and making racist comments. One of the individuals told Remmes that in four years, this is the first time she felt that she did not belong to the college community.

Remmes says she let things calm down for a few days after the incident, to get a handle on what exactly happened, and then she started to take action. She and Student Association (S.A.) President Arly Scully, teamed up to collaborate on a way to deal with the issue. Remmes says she and Scully wanted to do something about an issue they saw as serious.

No place here

On April 19, Remmes and Scully sent out two separate e-mails, one directed specifically to the senior class and another directed to the entire campus. The e-mails, outlined a new initiative called “Not in my home, not in THIS space.”

The e-mails state, “This campaign refers to the commitment we have as a community against hurtful words and actions. Racism, sexism, homophobia, and other acts that marginalize anyone in our community have no place here.”

Remmes says she has gotten several responses. She says that members of the campus community appreciate that the marginalization that occurs on campus is being recognized as a problem.

Scully says the worst part of the situation is that no one reacted when the derogatory comments were made about fellow classmates. She said if something like this had happened a few years ago, she would have transferred.

Remmes says she and Scully met to discuss a way that they could take a stand on the issue, and get students to realize that these types of actions are not ok.

“It’s a huge problem. I think during the day, if you’re walking around, you see community,” Remmes says. “Come Thursday, Friday, Saturday night, two in the morning, where’s community? Where’s the community when people are drinking alcohol in excess?”

A senior legacy

In addition to the e-mails, the issue was also brought up for discussion at the S.A. meeting on April 24 and the recent senior class meeting on April 19. At the meetings Remmes and Scully said this is something they want to start with their senior class, so it becomes the class legacy.

Remmes says she knows there are only a few weeks left in the semester, but she thinks that something can still be started with the class of 2007. She says the seniors occupy the living spaces on campus which draw party crowds on the weekends. Underclassmen look up to seniors, so they have a certain responsibility to set a good standard.

“We’ve been here four years, we’re educated about the school,” Remmes says. “It’s as simple as that: be role models and set the example.”

No disciplinary action has been taken against the student who made racist remarks. However, Scully says discipline is not what this is all about. She says people come to college with different, and it’s not easy to change someone’s way of thinking at this point. She says the point is that the words were said on this campus.

This new campaign is about more than just posting a sign on the door.

“What means more is that people go through with it,” Scully says.

Scully says she hopes resident assistants (R.A.s) will make the signs available in the dorms next fall. She says she hopes the student government of the rising senior class will carry it on too. Remmes says two rising sophomores spoke up after the last S.A. meeting, expressing interest in continuing the initiative.

“I hope we carry it on. Hopefully the S.A. and groups like Common Ground, Campus Ministry, and Multicultural Student Affairs will step up,” Remmes says.

Immersion not separation

This push isn’t coming from the administration, it is coming from students. Moise St. Louis, the director of multicultural student affairs, says it is important for this to be a peer-to-peer effort. He says the initiative contains a message that will carry on. St. Louis says he is glad that Remmes and Scully have been behind it.

“When peers say something, it resounds,” St. Louis says.

St. Louis says students approach him almost every day to express their hurt and frustration with insensitive things said or done to them. He says this behavior should be unacceptable to the entire campus community. No one wants to hear it and no one wants a disparaging comment directed toward him or her.

He says the community has to be thoughtful in their actions and their deeds. This doesn’t just concern people of color. He says it concerns anyone who is a minority, whether it is because of race, sexual orientation, culture or appearance.

“If we say we are a community, every member should feel welcome everywhere,” St. Louis says, “It’s a responsibility we all have.”

Remmes and Scully asked that these signs be hung on townhouse doors in an effort to get the campaigns message out. (Kristen Smoragiewicz, photo)

He says minority students don’t feel completely part of the campus community. One example of the separation that happens between white students and minority students is the international student community. He said we can do more than just ambassador housing to make international students feel included. He says there should be immersion, not separation.

He says that a typical meal in Alliot is a prime example of the separation that occurs. He says there is often a table of international students, all from different places, speaking four different languages. He says that people make a generalization by labeling the group as minority students.

Signs that read “Not in my home, not in THIS space” are available in Multicultural Student Affairs office, the S.A. office, and Student Life. Scully and Remmes say they hope students will show their support for the initiative by posting signs on their doors, and spreading the word to their friends.