The International Student Union will hold its first unity walk, during which participants will meet in Baker Ballroom to discuss diversity and inclusion.
In light of the vandalization of the #BlackLivesMatter graffiti wall at Ohio University and the racial tension at the University of Missouri, OU students will walk and discuss diversity and inclusion.
The International Student Union is holding its first unity walk, which will take place Thursday — OU's Founder’s Day — in an effort to unite students, faculty and staff regardless of race, religion or ethnicity.
“We want to do our unity walk on the same day because it goes with celebrating the history and legacy of Ohio University,” Hashim Pashtun, president of International Student Union, said.
The event will start at 4 p.m., and participants will gather in different buildings on campus and walk to Baker Center. Baker will act as a unifying agent, Pashtun said.
“During this event, we don’t care about any label other than Bobcat,” Pashtun said. “We are all Bobcats — no matter … your color, sex, religion, theology.”
Once the attendees gather at Baker Center, they will make their way to Baker Ballroom, where they will be encouraged to share stories about culture and diversity.
“The goal is to bring the Bobcat Family together to engage in discourse around inclusion,” Winsome Chunnu-Brayda, strategic director for diversity and inclusion and multicultural programs and initiatives at OU, said.
The first 250 attendees get free travel mugs with the Bobcat logo, Pashtun said.
“(The mugs are) a physical takeaway, but at the same time it’s a reminder … to make them feel proud, when they see it every day, that ‘I was one of those proud Bobcats who took part who is concerned about the diversity and unity on campus,’ ” Pashtun said.
One of the International Student Union’s goals for the event was to make it student-run and interactive. There will not be a podium for speakers. Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to walk around the room and meet other people from different backgrounds and learn about their cultures. For those who may be uncomfortable speaking, they can write their story on a notecard and someone else can read for them, Pashtun said.
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“We want to join everybody here on campus so that we are all the same,” Triwik Kurniasari, the programming director of the International Student Union and a graduate student studying communication and development studies, said. “We want to promote diversity on campus, diversity and equality. We are all the same, regardless of skin color, the language that we speak. We are one family, one Bobcat Family.”
The discussion in Baker Ballroom will last an hour and then participants will be invited to attend “Baker Bash,” the Founder’s Day celebration in Baker Center.
“We, international students, even we should not suppose that we know everything about other cultures,” Pashtun said. “There are other cultures that exist in America that even international students should learn. There are cultures and traditions that exist outside America that Americans should know to be more culturally appropriate.”
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