By Ashley Garner
I had the pleasure of attending the first “Real Talk” of the spring semester. The office of Student Activities and Multicultural Student Affairs hosts lunches that invite students and SMU staff to discuss challenging societal concerns.
Students are encouraged to discuss topics pertaining to the diversification of America using the Bantu discussion method. All students sit in a circle and speak one at a time to share their opinion on a topic. Their listening peers are not allowed to make comments until everyone has spoken. The purpose of this discussion method is to engage students in a culture of listening to understand not listening to attack the views of others.
Our first discussion topic was centered on the ways in which 21st century activism manifests and whether we still need activism. Student responses reflected that activism has taken a new from with the emergence of social media. Additionally, this means that we each take part in serving as activists whether in standing up for inequalities or otherwise.
The discussion was a perfect way to celebrate MLK day and kick off our “Real Talk” series for the semester. I look forward to attending more in the future!
To follow the discussion, check out highlights from their live tweets here: https://twitter.com/search?q=%23RealTalkSMU&src=hash