St. Lawrence University has a long history of commitment to diversity. Our Universalist founders were committed to gender equality during a time when male dominance was a societal norm that went virtually unchallenged. In the years since, that original commitment made in 1856 has gradually expanded to include all people. Today, 162 years later, we still have much work to do, but we are making progress.
As a community, we strive to grow in our appreciation of the importance of cultural diversity, of the dynamics of power and justice, and of social location. And we understand that this is a difficult commitment, one that will at times cause us discomfort. If we are to be successful in today’s world, however, we must embrace this challenge.
President Fox’s address at the 2014 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration posed the following question:
What is a St. Lawrence man or woman? We know you are smart, ambitious, and capable of high achievement. Your transcript and letters of recommendation given by your professors will sufficiently document your abilities. But in case no one asks you specifically, let me have the honor—What is your character? What virtues and principles guide you—and why?
We have extraordinary role models to guide us – noteworthy alumni/ae such as actor, producer and director Kirk Douglas, son of impoverished immigrant parents; Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer of the Franklin Institute and honored in 2004 as one of the 50 Most Important African Americans in Research Science; Maurice Kenny, renowned poet of Mohawk descent, Judi Wangalwa Wakhungu, Kenyan ambassador to France, and Susan Collins, US Senator from Maine, to name just a few. These individuals, each from a underrepresented group, have spent their careers bringing people together and helping others to rise up. Each has worked, and for those who are living, each continues to work, to make the world a better place.
Those who identify as non-white, LGBTQ, impoverished, or differently-abled – some of the groups mentioned in the recent op-ed essay, The Oppression Olympics – face real challenges. To them, life is anything but a game. Their pain is real. Satire may be an effective rhetorical device to spark deep conversation, but satire that makes light of the pain of others can have the effect of amplifying that pain. Can a person of conscience laugh at the existential challenges faced by marginalized groups in our society and on our campus? Does the Laurentian principle of respect – respect for self, respect for others, and respect for community – manifest clearly when such groups are lampooned? Is the Laurentian character amplified or diminished when we mock the oppression of others?
It is not our intention to quash free speech. Indeed, we value free speech as a hallmark of an excellent liberal arts education. We hope instead that this moment might be an opportunity for open dialogue about what it means to face challenges related to our social identities in an environment like St. Lawrence, how social location can influence the degree to which we feel empathy for the suffering of others, and what it means to be an ally who may not be from a challenged background, but who wants to work for social justice.
Dr. Kimberly Flint-Hamilton, Associate Dean for Diversity and Inclusion
Dr. Karl Schonberg, Dean and Vice President of Academic Affairs
Dr. Joseph Tolliver, Dean and Vice President of Student Life