Clemson Newsroom Article

http://www.clemson.edu/media-relations/4231/clemson-students-to-host-dialogue-event-on-identity/

reflecting on student participation

It has been very encouraging to see how many people have come out the support the CU Identity Project. As we have been presenting our project on the library bridge, students have been given the chance to actively break stereotypes on campus. The most interesting thing to me has been the diversity of identities that have been displayed on the board. Many things that I had previously never considered to be a part of someone’s identity have been put on the board. I feel that this does a good job of showing how different we all are and how our values can shape our identity and vice versa. I was also surprised by how many people were willing to write their “I am ___ but also ___.” statements on the board. I know I had a tough time coming up with my statement and wearing the shirt, but many of these people have seemed to have no problem writing multiple statements on the board. This just goes to show how proud Clemson students are of their differences!

Anticipation for the final event

We are now one week away from our culminating event and I am excited and anxious to see who attends and participates. Our class has been working hard to prepare for the event and has been generating buzz around campus through the library bridge events and social media. I am amazed to see that our weekly Facebook reach is over 2,000 each week. Through this process of planning the event and finally having a better understanding about the different identity issues and stereotypes in Clemson, I have gained a better understanding of my own identity. I have mentioned my anxiety over creating a profound and interesting “I am _____, but also _____” statement, but now I am starting to feel anxious about the culminating dialogue event. I want participants to feel the same relief and understanding I feel about my identity after the dialogue sessions. I hope that we are able to positively impact the attendants and offer an outlet for a safe and constructive discussion about difficult topics at Clemson.

During our mock dialogue session with Dr. Kendall’s class a few weeks ago, I found it difficult to get the students to participate in a meaningful way; however, toward the end of the session they began to open up a little more and move past obvious perceptions of identity. I think they also found it difficult to bring up topics that are not always talked about openly and in a nonjudgmental environment at Clemson such as race, sexual orientation, religion, etc. I’m hoping that the participants at the dialogue event will feel more inclined to open up and speak honestly and freely about their own identities and the identities of others at Clemson.

To prepare for this and ensure this success, we need to make sure the event environment is comfortable, open and inviting so the participants feel safe being honest and disclosing personal information. From this event I hope to learn more about dialogue and how and why people disclose certain information. I hope that by hearing individuals’ experiences and stories, we will have a better understanding about human communication and interaction. I also hope that the participants will find comfort or relief or a sense of belonging through relating to and sharing with others. This week before the event the public relations group and event/t-shirt group has a lot of work to do to ensure this will happen. I am excited to be a part of this human adventure symposium and look forward to see how it expands and improves over the next three years to make Clemson a leader in identity among universities and other communities.

After class tomorrow I hope to have a better idea of what to expect at the event next Wednesday. We have sent out invitations and publicized it on Facebook and Twitter. Hopefully we have reached out to enough students and community members who need an opportunity to voice their opinions, concerns, feelings and beliefs about identity and stereotypes in the Clemson community. I’m excited to see what’s to come next! 

April 10 and 11 on Library Bridge!

 The "I am __ but also__" banner

Clothes line! 

Statements of all kinds

As we are reading the hundreds of “I am ___ but also ___” statements,

we are reading a lot of powerful statements, but also a lot of more

light hearted responses. At first we struggled to decide whether or

not to include these responses in our culminating project. However, I

feel that the light hearted responses are just as important as the

more personal ones. Some of us are not as comfortable revealing

something so close to us whether or not it is anonymous, which is OK.

We have had a lot of fun reading light hearted responses in class, and

recognize that this is just as much a part of your identity as things

that may be more personal. However, some responses seem to stick out

more than others. For example as we were reading a lot of responses in

class, puzzled at some, and laughing at others “I am a rape victim,

but also recovering.” Although we try to give each response equal

importance, statements such as these cannot be ignored. Powerful

statements like this help us all put our personal identities in

prospective. Although we are all struggling in certain areas, none of

us can know exactly what other people struggle with every day. I feel

that this shows our project is working well to encourage difficult

conversations on the Clemson campus.

I am focused, but also dreaming.

My “I am _____, but also _____” statement took a lot of thought and time to develop. As I mentioned before, I struggled trying to come up with a statement that as interesting and all-inclusive about my personality. After class discussions and talking about my anxiety with friends and classmates, I realized that I did not have to develop a profound statement that was all-telling of my entire personality. I could come up with a statement that represented a part of me. The purpose of this exercise is to break stereotypes and make people feel comfortable talking about difficult topics. If I was worried about what people would think about my statement as an administrator of this project, then that would set me back and the students and Clemson community members we want to get involved.

My “I am _____, but also _____” statement is “I am focused, but also dreaming.” I think of myself as a very focused, driven and determined person who knows what I want. I am a hard worker and very disciplined when it comes to school, my career and what kind of person I want to be. I constantly meditate on ways to become the best person I can be and a better person in general. Even though I know that I want to become better and want to be successful, I still find myself dreaming about what else I could do with my life. As a communication studies major I know I want to work in corporate communications or public relations and have taken the steps in order to achieve these goals; however, I constantly think about taking time off after graduation to travel and do things out of my comfort zone. Or, I daydream thinking what it would be like to be a teacher, graphic designer or interior designer. I love what I do and what I will be able to do in the future because of my education and experiences, but I always leave room for other opportunities to come along or to fantasize about other things I am interested in. I think this statement is a good depiction of one aspect of my identity. Once I got over the anxiety of creating an interesting, deep, ultimate thought provoking statement, I was able to observe aspects of my own identity and articulate one in an accurate way.

Students and other members of the Clemson community were able to create great “I am _____, but also _____” statements as well. While reading some of the statements that were t-shirt and banner worthy, our class noticed several trends. The most prominent trend was religion, followed by race and geography. I expected these trends in Clemson, and am glad that students realize these topics are not talked about often in this community. There are several stereotypes in the Clemson community that are worthy of discussion and dialogue. Next week is our second library bridge event where we will be showcasing our identity clothesline, banner and accepting more “I am _____, but also _____” notecards. I am interested to see the reactions of students as they observe the t-shirts on the clothesline. I hope this will begin discussion and reflection that will be beneficial during our culmination dialogue event at the end of the month. 

Schedule of Events!

After reading many of our reflections the past few weeks, you may be wondering how to get involved in our project. We have several events coming up the during the month of April that we would love for you to participate in.

·    

     Library Bridge Event 2 : We will be on the library bridge April 10-11 from 10am-4pm. We would love for you to stop by and fill out a note card, write on our banner and read other people’s “I am ___ but also ___” statements

·     

Fill out a note card with your “I am ___ but also ___” statement and drop it by Strode 413

·      

Culminating Event: We have our culminating event on April 25 from 6-8pm in Hendrix Ballrooms A&B. We will have the “I am___but also___” clothesline display, a short, student-created film, and round-table dialogue discussion. Free food will be provided.

We can’t wait to see you there!