Magazine WORKS

diversity WORKS Magazine Summer 2018 Celebrating Diversity at Marist Photo by Desmond Murray Desmond by Photo Marist alumni Calvin McCoy ‘12 (left) and Emelia Lartey ’15 (right) attended the 2018 Mon Afrique celebration on campus. Lartey initiated Mon Afrique at Marist in 2012. Our Staff Katherine Tijerina, Photograoher Desmond Murray, Editor Marika Cygert, Staff Writer Peta-Gaye Thomas, Staff Photographer Raphael Beretta, Staff Writer 2 diversity WORKS Contents Summer 2018 Our Staff ................................................................................................................................................................. 2 Mon Afrique Legacy Continues at Marist ............................................................................................................... 4 Black History Month Exhibit at Marist in Italy ........................................................................................................ 5 Diversity is Forever Growing at Marist ................................................................................................................... 6 Screening and Discussion Features Angy Rivera ........................................................................................... 7 Michelle Alexander Discusses Her Book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness .... 8 Marist Administrator Attends TechDay in New York City ....................................................................................... 9 More Than 60 Students Inducted into Honor Society for High-Achieving Students with Disabilities..................... 10 The Past, Present and Future of Black History – For The Culture ......................................................................... 11 President Emeritus Dennis J. Murray Honored at 27th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast ...................... 12 A Taste of Soul ...................................................................................................................................................... 14 Women in Technology .......................................................................................................................................... 15 Editor: Desmond Murray | Copyeditor: Leslie Bates Production Coordinator: Deirdre Marsh Diversity Works is published twice a year by the Marist College Diversity Council Marist College, 3399 North Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 845/575-3000 ext. 2477 | Find us on Twitter @MaristDiversity | [email protected] Mon Afrique Legacy Continues at Marist By Desmond Murray, Editor n April 2018, hundreds of guests including Marist faculty, Istaff, students, and members of the outside community attended Mon Afrique in the James J. McCann Recreation Center. Mon Afrique is a formal gala presented by the Marist Blackout for African Awareness committee featuring music, food, and speakers all aimed at celebrating Africa and expanding understanding of the continent. Emelia Lartey ’15, one of the speakers at the event, told the audience about the history of the event and why it is so important to continue the tradition at Marist. Lartey, a Ghanaian alumna from London, England, saw a need at Marist for greater awareness of Africa, from the diversity of its countries and cultures to political issues and its emerging role in global affairs. The organization aims to celebrate Africa, educate the campus community, and support African students at Marist. The theme for the 2018 Mon Afrique event was “Our Heritage.” Highlights of this year’s program included a fashion show featuring custom outfits by an African designer, Photos by Desmond Murray poetry, and dance. Hundreds of guests including Marist faculty, staff, Mon Afrique was initiated by Lartey in 2012 and first held students, and members in the Student Center. What began as a small project of the outside community has now blossomed into a grand celebration. The event is attended Mon Afrique in supported April in the James J. McCann Recreation Center. by the Center for Multicultural Affairs, Student Affairs, the Gospel Choir, and the Office of the President. 4 Growing anti-immigration sentiment in Italian politics concur- Black History Month rent with consistently large numbers migrating from Northern Africa makes the intercultural dialogue BHMF seeks to foster Exhibit at Marist in more important than ever. These “conversations” between an Italian people entrenched in centuries of rigid tradition and a Italy scattered African population often displaced by political and economic turmoil have grown increasingly sour in the public By Raphael Beretta, Senior Writer Abroad forum. “There has currently been racially motivated violence directed at refugees in Italy,” Enriquez said. “Many people here do not attered posters adorning the facade of a decrepit building accept refugees. Images such as these might make people have in Florence, Italy, gave Marist students and passersby alike T a change of heart.” rare glimpses into the hearts of migrants recently. The exhibit became the centerpiece of a discussion by students in Florence Black History Month Florence has brought new perspectives in a course on ethics and migration. and started important conversations since its inception in 2016. Peekskill, NY’s Justin Randolph Thompson, an artist and The display, a series of photographs, was presented by the a professor at Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence, founded the organization Black History Month Florence on the walls of the organization in order to form “a community dedicated to chal- former Sant’Orsola convent. “Black is the Color of My True lenging flattened narratives about African and African diasporic Love’s Hair” featured the works of several photographers cultures and disseminating culturally diverse programming,” including Martina Bacigalupo, Joana Choumali, Adji Dieye, according to BHMF’s mission statement. Kevin Jerome Everson, Délio Jasse, and Tommaso Tancredi. The pieces explored the social implications and psychological For more information, visit www.blackhistorymonthflorence.com/ ramifications of identity documentation and legal status. The faces of several subjects embellishing the walls were blocked out by white rectangles, representing the superseding of migrant identities with document papers. Other parts of the building presented a myriad of real identity-document photographs taken of people before and during their migration process. Students enrolled in the Ethics and Migration Honors seminar taught by Marist School of Liberal Arts professor Dr. Sasha Biro visited the exhibit in conjunction with their class. The visit was to spark interest in the topic, incite discussion, and stimulate attempts to empathize with groups of people undergoing very different struggles than the students. Led by Biro, the students convened in front of the building in early February. They discussed the potential relevance of themes presented by the artists to the topics explored in their course: immigrant identity crises, forced assimilation, and documentation. Janet Enriquez, a member of the Marist Freshman Florence Experience, was among the students. The exhibit, she said, Black History Month exhibit on the walls of the former “can make others more aware of the different circumstances Sant’Orsola convent in Italy. migrants go through. Not everyone is happy to leave their hometown or is able to carry all of their belongings with them. Photo by Raphael Beretta It was really impactful.” 5 Affairs, the Diversity Council, Student Activities, the Student Diversity is Forever Government Association, the Appreciating Races and Creating Opportunities club, Black Student Union, and the Student Growing at Marist Programming Council. The organizations and clubs collaborated on planning, hosting, and funding events such as Open Mic By Marika Cygert, Staff Writer Night and Hispanic Culture Corner during Hispanic Heritage Month, the Indian Culture Celebration and Film Screening, the “Sending Smoke Signals: Representations and Realities of Native America” talk, and several more. ibrant colors, unique patterns, and intricate embroidery surrounded the audience. A white dashiki with detailed V Ruiz-Grech believes that this year Marist focused on observing stitching of green and gold tribal patterns, representing West Hispanic Heritage Month by hosting several events that truly Africa, was the first traditional clothing showcased in the Global celebrated Hispanic/Latino culture such as “Who We Are,” Fashion Show at Marist. To loud music, a female Marist student which examined how Hispanic stereotypes affect individuals fiercely strutted down the runway in a shoulder-draped emerald and society as a whole. During this month of celebration, satin dress, showcasing her Rwandan culture. As the audience students also had the opportunity to dance to the Mikata watched intently for the next country to be announced, a Salsa Band with its repertoire of hard-hitting salsa, merengue, female student wearing a fiery red and gold kosode walked the bachata, and many more traditional Hispanic tunes. runway, representing Japan. Events like these were not the only milestones that are helping The show was one of many events held by the Center for promote diversity on campus. Earlier this academic year, Marist Multicultural Affairs and other organizations this past academic welcomed award-winning novelist Reyna Grande who delivered year to better represent the student body and promote a lecture about her life before and after illegally emigrating from

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