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Open Letter to Malachi Randolph and the Ball State Community,
We are writing as members of the Diversity Team at the Counseling Center, made up of Professional Staff, Doctor Interns, Doctoral students and Master’s Interns. We want to express our strong negative reaction to the prejudiced, derogatory and racially/ethnically insensitive comments of the SGA President, Malachi Randolph. We were glad to see that he is resigning his position since we believe he can no longer speak with any authority for the student body at Ball State. The Diversity Team at the Ball State University Counseling Center strives to create opportunities for both international students and domestic students to learn to embrace and appreciate diversity in different aspects of their life. In light of this recent incident we want to use this forum to let everyone here at Ball State, know that we strongly condemn his behavior, and we disapprove of all such acts that breed hatred, discrimination, and intolerance.
Racism can be defined as any attitude or behavior, whether intentional or unintentional, conscious or unconscious, visible or subtle, which subordinates a person with a racial/ethnic minority status. The comments made by the SGA President stereotyped and demeaned an ethnic minority group. When we use such comments or indulge in such acts, we run the risk of not only hurting people but also causing psychological trauma for all people involved. Furthermore, such comments make other people with any minority status feel unsafe and unwelcome, especially coming from an elected representative of BSU students. These comments undermine the efforts of the University to create a welcoming environment for the increasing number of international students recruited to Ball State. The more concerning fact is that even after he acknowledged that he made insensitive comments, we did not hear his sincere apology to people of the ethnic minority group whom he negatively stereotyped. This University, BSU students, faculty and staff are working hard to be a welcoming place for the hundreds of international students coming here. Ball State University is committed to diversity and prides itself in being a safe and diverse campus. It is good to see the comments of other students condemning these remarks as well.
We read that the SGA President is an International Business major. He will be working in a profession where he will have to work with people from all over the world. He will need to learn to understand and respect different cultures and appreciate what they offer. Therefore, we want to do more than just condemn what he said. Too many political leaders in recent years feel they simply have to apologize and the matter is taken care of. However, BSU is an educational environment and Malachi Randolph has the opportunity to challenge himself to confront his attitudes and take active steps to increase his awareness, knowledge and skill in relating to and with international students at the University. With that in mind we would like to invite Mr. Randolph to attend the International Conversation Hour (ICH) we hold for U.S. and International students. ICH meets once a week and brings together international and U.S. students to learn from each other. We also would invite him to be a part of a diversity advocacy workshop which will be held in the near future. This workshop will address the subtle and not so subtle ways in which words and behavior can cause pain to others because of their diversity. The workshop will also address how to actively respond to these situations in a constructive way. This would be an affirmative act on the part of Mr. Randolph that will go beyond a mere apology and show a true commitment to becoming more culturally sensitive and aware. So, Mr. Randolph, we invite you to reach out and take a positive step in this direction. Call the Counseling Center at 285-1736 and ask to talk with Dr. Pei-Yi Lin who coordinates the programs mentioned above and is one of the leaders of the Diversity Team. We are open to working with you to address these issues.
The Counseling Center Diversity Team
Pei-Yi Lin
Jay Zimmerman
Kyle Kittleson
Nghiem Khanh
Manisha Rustagi
Hyoseok Kwon
Yuri Choi
Aikaterini Psarropoulou
Erica Hurley
Kristen Cole
Victor Figuereo
Nick Lee
Elliot Spengler
Emily Barnum
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