I’m always reflective at the end of the year, and events that occurred on campus at the end of this semester have made me reflect more deeply than ever on who we are as a community. I share my thoughts today because I hope we can find a way to support one another rather than cause pain.
SLU is an amazing place. A true candle in the wilderness, a light for those who seek knowledge, understanding, and compassion, a place where young people can learn what it means to lead with empathy. I felt it when I first set foot on this campus many years ago. When I talk with alumni, they’re effusive about how they found true belonging here, how they forged tight-knit, lifelong relationships with others who were very different from themselves. Every week, Chaplain Shaun Whitehead says it best: “All are welcome here.” No matter who you are, what your background, religion, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, political affiliation, ability status or national identity – you are welcome in this space.
Today, though, I find myself weighed down by the pain many members of our community recently experienced. Words have the power to heal, and words have the power to hurt. This past week, cruel, threatening language made members of our community afraid, feel that they don’t belong, and wonder if this is the place for them. This is absolutely heartbreaking and unacceptable. The shroud of anonymity can be toxic and corrosive. Sometimes, even those who don’t intend to harm fail to consider the damaging impact of their words on others.
“We are willing to risk difficulty and discomfort in working towards achieving these goals [of diversity and inclusion,]” Whitehead says. Engaging across differences can be difficult and uncomfortable. But out of that discomfort comes understanding and enlightenment. It’s the nature of a vibrant, robust intellectual community to have differing perspectives, to have different knowledge and experiences, and even to disagree vigorously and passionately. We can and should commit to engaging in those difficult conversations, but do so with respect and empathy, knowing that none of us has all the answers. It’s through respectful disagreement that we grow and mature. Isn’t that the real value of diversity and inclusion, bringing together diverse and often unexpected perspectives and learning how to engage through our differences, learning how to view the world through diverse lenses?
I believe in this community. I know that we have the capacity to be better tomorrow than we are today, to become more than the sum of our component parts. I hope and pray that we can all commit to building one another up rather than tearing others down as we move forward through final exams and beyond.
Kimberly Flint-Hamilton, PhD
Associate Dean for Diversity & Inclusion