Multicultural Club hosts meetings to promote acceptance

The Multicultural Club [MCC] met for their third meeting this semester Tues., Sept. 19, in the student organization room on second floor Stover. 

Resident Directors Matt Pioch and Liz Diviney currently lead the MCC with the intent of raising awareness and understanding of other cultures, but also to educate on racism, ethnocentrism and religion. 

“I felt there needed to be a place to discuss these kinds of topics,” Pioch said.   

His goal is to see the club led by students.

Pioch and Diviney are working together to come up with material and discussion topics for the club’s weekly meetings. The meetings are held Tuesdays at 4 p.m. in the student organizations room on second floor of the Stover Campus Center. 

Diviney led a meeting for the first time Sept. 19, something she said she was nervous about but hoped the meeting was enjoyable.

Diviney gathered information about the current Canadian election and Jagmeet Singh, who is running to be the leader of Canada’s federal New Democratic Party. The club looked at online sources and Diviney’s handout titled “Responding to Hate and the Danger of Labels.”

There was an incident that occurred during an event for Singh, where a woman started harassing him. This was the main focus of the discussion.

For an hour, members read through the allotted information and were encouraged to engage in discussions analyzing all aspects of the situation.

“Labels dehumanize … but [they] can be ideal,” Pioch said.   

Pioch said while labels allow people to categorize individuals thus making them easier to control, at the end of the day, labels with negative connotations are harmful and disrupt societal functions.  

Another topic brought up to further identify the power of labels was the idea of first impressions and stereotypes. Group members unanimously confirmed detrimental effects of stereotyped labeling of an individual based on a similar group of people. 

When the meeting came to a close, members were encouraged to keep their handouts so as to remember the power of labels and maybe start a conversation outside their group. 

Besides discussions, the MCC hosts occasional events available to students and staff such as the Defamation Experience Oct. 9, a free event. 

Those attending will travel to West Virginia University to see a traveling theatrical group from Chicago act out court cases dealing with race and ethnicity while the audience plays the jury. 

Anyone interested can sign up on MyConnect, however there are only 22 spots available. 

 Diviney and Pioch agree that connections are of upmost importance, especially in a world where messages across the world are sent and received within seconds. 

“Take time to ask what’s your story,” said Pioch. “Build a bridge, not a wall.”