Editor,
UNM will host a civil rights symposium this week at the SUB. Students should strongly consider attending it.
The theme of the symposium is "40 Years of Community Activism, 1967-2007: Civil Rights Reform, Then and Now."
The symposium will provide the UNM and Albuquerque communities the opportunity to engage with experts on a variety of issues related to civil rights. This symposium is significant in the context of the events that have occurred recently on this campus and around our country. One needs to remember that the American Indian community was disrespected at our first football game. In addition, other occurrences, such as the attacks on international students, desecration of the Mexican flag and the treatment of women by some fraternities have raised concern about a need for tolerance. Thus, we have a long way to go in the area of creating a community and country where the civil rights of people are respected.
As a student here at UNM for the past five years, I have encountered a number of people who describe UNM as an inactive campus, where people do not participate or care to participate. I disagree, as student involvement does not need to occur in any official capacity or be sanctioned by any institution, association or organization. Many students are aware that many of the official opportunities for involvement are not inclusive and, at times, promote an alienating and disdainful atmosphere. The evidence for unofficial student involvement are the actions of students who take up issues that occur on our campus and how brave students act to create a better place for us to live and study here at UNM.
The civil rights symposium is a historic moment at UNM where we can re-evaluate the institution and our respective departments, organizations, associations and communities to constructively discuss the society we live in and the need to be eternally aware of our society and the kind of legacy we wish to leave for future generations. I am pleased that President David Schmidly and other administrators will take an active role in the symposium. As I have stated before, struggle is a natural part of our lives, and we must continually strive to work together to build a tolerant society that incorporates basic respect for one another through our educational systems and institutions for the purpose of promoting a more just society.
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As a representative of GPSA, I ask that this next week we work toward using the symposium as a mechanism to foster a continuous dialogue throughout the campus, using various forms of media and public venues to incorporate the work of the task forces that have taken place over the last few years, into our UNM community so that we can establish a safe and respected space for constructive dialogue.
Joseph J. Garcia
GPSA president
