A former CSU president and the Graduate Student Association (GSA) have formed a peace initiative on campus to calm tensions on campus, as a result of the attacks on the United States.
“Our goal is to be a catalyst for understanding,” said Jonathan Carruthers, one of the group’s spokespersons and a former Concordia Student Union president (1995-1996).
“[We want] to create forums and to offer information that educate students on these issues, that expose groups to different sides of this issue, that introduces students to each other so that they may actually work out these problems on their own.”
The broad-based student initiative called Tolerance, Acceptance and Growth (TAG) originated as a study conducted by GSA President Rocci Luppicini and vp external Nisha Sajnani on feelings about racism at Concordia. They eventually submitted their study to the United Nations World Conference Against Racism held in Durban, South Africa, from August 31 to September 7.
The organizers of TAG are appealing to all members of the Concordia community to come out and support them in their activities One activity is a banner painting project which began on Sept. 28, in the lobby of the Hall Building and will continue until Oct. 11. A second activity is a photo exhibit depicting acts of tolerance and intolerance to beginning Oct. 11.
The third activity that TAG is organizing will be a discussion panel about the ‘The Learning Environment’ and ‘The Living Environment’ from Oct. 9 to Oct.11.
Carruthers, a returning student to Concordia approached the GSA shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks. “I got tired of sitting around watching television, watching all this happen. I looked around and I thought, ‘What would be the greatest positive impact I could make?'” When he heard about TAG, he made a proposal to the GSA about expanding their proposal to include a group that would be both informative and that would allow for an open discussion between students at Concordia.
He added that Concordia is a highly multicultural environment and he felt it was necessary to act immediately on an extremely tense situation at Concordia. It stemmed by mounting reports from Muslim students that they were subject to racist and bigoted remarks.
TAG contacted student faculty associations, as well as faculty and staff
organizations, the CSU and the dean of students office. All the groups reacted positively, said Carruthers.
Donald Boisvert, the dean of students said that his office has pledged $500 to the group and added that the group had the full support of his office in the hopes that it would help solve the sense of frustration on campus in the aftermath of the events in the US.
The CSU stated that the group has their full support and will give TAG some funding. The amount the CSU will give TAG has not yet been determined. “We definitely support this initiative,” stated Sabrina Stea, the president of the CSU.
Carruthers said TAG’s operating budget is already a at few thousand dollars thanks to donations from the Concordia Art Supply store in the VAV building, and the St-Laurent Co-Op.
“This is a project that affects everybody. This is something that is the
responsibility of all members of the community,” added Carruthers.
“Our goal is to be a catalyst for understanding,” said Jonathan Carruthers, one of the group’s spokespersons and a former Concordia Student Union president (1995-1996).
“[We want] to create forums and to offer information that educate students on these issues, that expose groups to different sides of this issue, that introduces students to each other so that they may actually work out these problems on their own.”
The broad-based student initiative called Tolerance, Acceptance and Growth (TAG) originated as a study conducted by GSA President Rocci Luppicini and vp external Nisha Sajnani on feelings about racism at Concordia. They eventually submitted their study to the United Nations World Conference Against Racism held in Durban, South Africa, from August 31 to September 7.
The organizers of TAG are appealing to all members of the Concordia community to come out and support them in their activities One activity is a banner painting project which began on Sept. 28, in the lobby of the Hall Building and will continue until Oct. 11. A second activity is a photo exhibit depicting acts of tolerance and intolerance to beginning Oct. 11.
The third activity that TAG is organizing will be a discussion panel about the ‘The Learning Environment’ and ‘The Living Environment’ from Oct. 9 to Oct.11.
Carruthers, a returning student to Concordia approached the GSA shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks. “I got tired of sitting around watching television, watching all this happen. I looked around and I thought, ‘What would be the greatest positive impact I could make?'” When he heard about TAG, he made a proposal to the GSA about expanding their proposal to include a group that would be both informative and that would allow for an open discussion between students at Concordia.
He added that Concordia is a highly multicultural environment and he felt it was necessary to act immediately on an extremely tense situation at Concordia. It stemmed by mounting reports from Muslim students that they were subject to racist and bigoted remarks.
TAG contacted student faculty associations, as well as faculty and staff
organizations, the CSU and the dean of students office. All the groups reacted positively, said Carruthers.
Donald Boisvert, the dean of students said that his office has pledged $500 to the group and added that the group had the full support of his office in the hopes that it would help solve the sense of frustration on campus in the aftermath of the events in the US.
The CSU stated that the group has their full support and will give TAG some funding. The amount the CSU will give TAG has not yet been determined. “We definitely support this initiative,” stated Sabrina Stea, the president of the CSU.
Carruthers said TAG’s operating budget is already a at few thousand dollars thanks to donations from the Concordia Art Supply store in the VAV building, and the St-Laurent Co-Op.
“This is a project that affects everybody. This is something that is the
responsibility of all members of the community,” added Carruthers.
