Town Hall on Race

About 50 people attended the evening event. Facilitators from BSA asked participants to discuss in small groups two main questions.

• In what ways does racism and oppression affect the work of EMU?
• In what ways does racism and oppression affect the spirit of EMU?

Following the discussion, each group shared key points. Many groups answered both questions with negativity that they have seen around campus.

One group stated that college is a time of discovery, but being in an environment riddled with racism hinders the ability to truly discover oneself. Also mentioned was the feeling of forced relationships within the classroom due to race, which in turn affects the ability to work productively with classmates. Many groups also talked about microaggressions, which are everyday verbal or nonverbal slights or insults that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages 鈥� such as racist jokes.

鈥淢icroaggressions are products of prejudice and ignorance. Those experiences reach beyond race but affect us all,鈥� said senior Christian Parks, who helped to facilitate the event.

The groups were also asked to discuss what they believed would be a good way for EMU to start instituting change in regards to racism and oppression. Some examples included hiring more people of color as faculty, and extending anti-racism and anti-oppression training in all institutional levels.

Participants were encouraged to attend BSA meetings on the second and fourth Thursday of every month in University Commons Room 124. Parks also mentioned the potential for a privilege-themed playback theater event in March, which would 鈥渙pen the space for white folks on campus to share their experiences of privilege as a way to continue the work of understanding how privilege impacts work and spirit at EMU.鈥�

First-year student Kendi Mwongo said the meeting was 鈥渂eneficial,鈥� and she would support it in the current format on a monthly basis.

The challenge of committing to racial justice

Drew Hart, an author and doctoral candidate at Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, spoke at a Thursday evening lecture titled 鈥淲hy Have So Many Christians Been So Wrong for So Long?: Racial Formation and Counterintuitive Solidarity.鈥� He also offered a Friday morning chapel forum on the topic 鈥淟earning to Love Black People, 鈥� drawing from Hebrews 11:23-28.

Hart said that an 鈥渆pistemological divide鈥� exists between people鈥檚 understandings of race and racism, with different paths and circles of socialization leading to seeing the same event 鈥渇rom very different perspectives.鈥�

鈥淲e have very different ways of understanding, narrating and responding to race in America,鈥� Hart said. 鈥淭ake note of what鈥檚 unique and different about the culture that shaped you.鈥�

He noted that while things have certainly changed in the past four centuries of American history, the country hasn鈥檛 鈥渕agically delivered on social justice.鈥� Instead, the issues have 鈥渕utated into different forms,鈥� and maintained a racialized and hierarchical framework. Going forward, he pointed to the 鈥淛esus-shaped, counter-intuitive way鈥� that is 鈥渄rawn to the those on the margins of society鈥� and empowers them and seeks to end domination.

Hart, who has a blog titled 鈥溾�� hosted by The Christian Century, uses the hashtag #anablacktivism. He followed up Friday鈥檚 chapel time with a talkback session and signed copies of his most recent book, Trouble I鈥檝e Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism (published by Herald Press), while on campus.

The Tony-nominated Broadway musical 鈥淎 Year with Frog and Toad鈥� is based on author/illustrator Arnold Lobel鈥檚 鈥淔rog and Toad鈥� children鈥檚 book series. The musical, directed by professor opens Nov. 20. Additional performances are Nov. 21 and Dec. 3, 4 and 5 at 7:30 p.m. with matinees Nov. 22 and Dec. 5 at 3 p.m. Tickets can be purchased through the EMU box office at 540-432-4582 or聽.

鈥淥ur production聽is set here in the Shenandoah Valley and the animals are the kind you would find in the woods and ditches right here in western Virginia,鈥� says Vogel. Her vision was to have the actors portray human characters with animal qualities instead of being in animal costumes. 鈥淭he actors have studied the way the animals move and are using that in their portrayals. Also, the characters reflect folks you might meet here too.鈥�

For history major Derrick Turner, assistant director and dramaturg, the show brings back memories. 鈥淚 loved those books. My mom read them to me when I was a child.鈥�

To spark the actors鈥� imaginations, Turner conducted extensive research with EMU professor and conservation photographer . He then compiled movement videos and information on each portrayed animal for the actors, including habitat, food and skeletal structures.

EMU hasn鈥檛 done a children鈥檚 play in at least a decade, Vogel says, but the play meets the ‘s educational goals. 鈥淭heater for Young Audiences (TYA) is a hugely important genre of theater that our students should have experience performing and producing. Children are a different audience than adults.鈥�

The cast will perform three additional matinees for students from six local schools and three home school groups, says Turner, who made study packets accessible for K-5 grades.

鈥淎dults are much more well-behaved, but I find performing for children is a much more interactive experience,鈥� says actor Josh Helmuth, a music composition major who performed for elementary students while in high school.

Helmuth portrays four animals, including a showy bird and a straight and narrow lizard. 鈥淵eah, I don鈥檛 get a break,鈥� he says, smiling.

Playing animals has never been a favorite role for English and theater double-major Makayla Baker. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 like when people portray animals. It鈥檚 so weird. But here I am鈥擨鈥檓 a turtle,鈥� she deadpans. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 been great.鈥�

Baker鈥檚 turtle is a laundry woman carrying a basket on her back and a scrub board around her neck.

Myriam Aziz, a graduate student in the master鈥檚 conflict transformation program, was cast as Frog. 鈥淎 female playing a part for a male, I think that鈥檚 really funny,鈥� says Aziz, who is active in theater in Lebanon. But having a male as a pal, she says, 鈥渞eminds me of my friend back home. We鈥檝e been friends for 13 years.鈥�

The cast and crew agree that even though 鈥淎 Year With Frog and Toad鈥� is based on a children鈥檚 book series, adults will also appreciate the cheerful upbeat musical.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of comedic effect in it,鈥� Helmuth says.

鈥淚t is funny,鈥� says Baker, noting that the EMU community is inviting younger family members and people from their church to the show. 鈥淎 lot of EMU students were raised on these books.鈥�

Cast

Myriam Aziz, Christian Parks, Ezrionna Prioleau, Bianica Baker, Esther Ajayi, Josh Helmuth, Makayla Baker, Zoe Parakuo, Hailey Holcomb

Crew

Director 鈥� Heidi Winters Vogel
Choreographer and Costume Designer –
Accompanist 鈥� Jim Clemens
Stage Manager – Caitlin Randazzo
Assistant Stage Managers – Lydia Hales and Belen Fernandez
Props Designers – Alex Rosenberg and Kevin Clark
Assistant Lighting Designer – Sierra Comer
Assistant Director and Dramaturg – Derrick Turner
Music Director –
Set Designer –
Lighting Designer –

An annual and favorite tradition among the EMU community is a trip to Sprague’s Barbershop in downtown Harrisonburg, where Tyrone Sprague gives haircuts along with lively conversation on the sixth floor of a Court Square building. Sunlight streamed in through lacy beige curtains as a group of EMU students filed in to learn and discuss the history of racism in Harrisonburg.

鈥淎merica’s original sin is that America was established as a white society,鈥� with slavery being a key foundation of the nation, said visit facilitator Stan Maclin, vice president of the Northeast Neighborhood Association, a community group working to keep that area of Harrisonburg clean, safe, and crime-free.

In the 1950s and 60s, the northeast corner of Harrisonburg 鈥� where Rose’s and Autozone are now 鈥� was a bustling neighborhood of black culture and business. Then came Project R4. Cities across the country were given the opportunity to receive development funds for 鈥渦rban renewal鈥� projects in areas labeled as slums. Harrisonburg’s black neighborhood was declared eminent domain, residents were displaced, and their land sold to commercial developers.

Maclin cited King’s 鈥淏eyond Vietnam鈥� address in response to structural racism such as Project R4: 鈥淚 am convinced,鈥� King wrote, 鈥渢hat if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a radical revolution of values.鈥�

Sprague, giving a haircut during the visit, said that he sees this 鈥渞evolution of values鈥� happening in younger generations. Across different ethnicities, 鈥渢hey eat together, they laugh together, they go dancing together. In the 1960s and 70s, you didn’t see that,鈥� said Sprague, who grew up in Farmville, Virginia. Sprague remembers that his mother 鈥� and white culture 鈥� taught him to fear repercussions for looking a white woman in the eyes if he passed her on the street.

The celebration also brought visitors to the EMU campus and the local community, including The Rev. Dr. Nikita Okembe-Ra Imani, a prominent poet, hip-hop artist, musician, and black history scholar from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Speaking at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church during a Sunday service, Imani credited King’s confidence in the face of such ingrained mistrust to his faith in God. When we see 鈥渕ayhem and destruction, the kind of sickness without compassion,鈥� said Imani, 鈥渢he world is calling for the people of confidence.鈥� King’s ideology and strategies were direct results of his pacifistic Christianity, Imani explained. 鈥淭he system had tanks. The system had batons 鈥� the system had financial power. King had the Word.鈥�

At the next day鈥檚 MLK Day chapel service, Imani called all Christians to join together. Cultures of violence, he said, are ultimately impotent before Christians, who 鈥渂ring power and brotherhood where there is hatred and malevolence.鈥�

Accompanying Imani to Bethel AME and also during the on-campus MLK Day service was the EMU gospel choir and newly installed Harrisonburg mayor Chris Jones.

Jones, president of the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), led an afternoon community program at Lucy Simms Center (formerly Lucy Simms School, this segregated school taught area black children from 1939-1966).

The program included two songs by the MLK Celebration Choir. EMU members of this community group included campus chaplain , program assistant , and , of .

Thomas co-chaired the MLK Celebration planning committee with student Christian Parks. The committee wanted to 鈥渃reate a celebration of the life of Martin Luther King Jr. by concentrating on who he was as a person as well as what he did for our country,鈥� she said.

鈥淭he hope is that King’s vision and dream can inspire more dreams and more efforts,鈥� said Parks. 鈥淚n the gathered beloved community, I believe we can dream an America that truly finds the beauty in all things.鈥�

I am the daughter of Puerto Rican parents, born and raised in Philadelphia. Yes, I belong to a Mennonite church, but it鈥檚 one recently planted in a working class area of Philly 鈥� housed in a former health clinic surrounded by chain-link fence, immersed in the sights and sounds of the city, quite unlike the more common scenic Mennonite churches.

I wanted a college that somewhat resembled my high school in size, which held under 600 students, a rarity in the city. My parents wanted me to attend a school with positive Mennonite ties, and I wanted to go somewhere far away, to a place that was new and different. So, EMU it was.

My story is not too different from two other current students from Philly at EMU, or from an older alumnus who was raised in Philadelphia and returned to work there as a physician. For all four of us, coming to EMU was a jolt, what with the cultural and geographic differences, but we emerged with a deep appreciation for the values and lifestyle of EMU鈥檚 semi-rural setting.

Jolt of Quiet Lifestyle

Christian Parks, a junior, said he wanted a place where he could continue his Christian education, at a college vastly different than his home city. 鈥淚 love being in the Shenandoah [Valley], with all the connections and proximity to nature we have here.鈥�

Freshman Shawn Treichel came to EMU with similar intentions. Treichel wanted a smaller school setting to counter the 鈥渃razy city鈥� he had called home off and on for many years. Treichel added that the happiness of Shenandoah residents, as well as their care for their town, was what made him feel most at home.

Sure, both students could easily name the things they missed while at school, such as reliable public transportation, the plethora of convenience stores, reading on the bus, the sounds of trains. But after the difficult initial transition, they said EMU instilled a sense of belonging, giving them an appreciation for its one-of-a-kind feel. Parks and Treichel agreed they wanted to continue living in small, community-centered towns that feel welcoming, though neither has settled on a future career. Parks is majoring in philosophy and theology, and Treichel is a computer science major.

came to EMU, thinking he would never return to live in Philadelphia. Encouraged by his parents, Leaman, a 1993 graduate who is now a medical doctor, chose EMU for its well-known with the hope of doing medical missions overseas after graduating, far from his hometown.

Leaman鈥檚 transition to EMU was less intimidating than it might be for the typical city-soaked teenager 颅鈥� he was familiar with rural Mennonite life from visiting relatives.

Urban Pace Missed

Spring break service trips to New York, however, made Leaman yearn for the city. 鈥淚t was like coming home,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 realized how much I missed having relationships with people from a range of racial backgrounds and experiences. I missed the liveliness and pace of energy of the urban life and experience.鈥�

After graduating, Leaman took time to lead a group with to Mexico. While there, he felt the call to get his medical degree, and to do this in Philadelphia. He is now a supervising doctor at , which provides everything from counseling to dental care for those facing the largest barriers towards better health.

Leaman credits his time in bucolic Harrisonburg, where his professors at EMU encouraged him to pursue leadership roles, starting in Mexico and moving back to medical school and serving the population of his old neighborhood in Philadelphia.

Safety, Comfort in Harrisonburg

If you are from an area where there are more people than trees, you will understand when I say that EMU can be like stepping into a new world, a new culture. In Philadelphia, my everyday was skyscrapers, ever-constant sounds, and bustling activity. Meanwhile EMU, surrounded by hills, farmland, and winding roads, can often feel wide, silent, even humdrum.

No amount of previous experiences in rural locations could prepare a city kid for living in the country eight months out of the year. And yet, Harrisonburg, among many things, emits a sense of safety and comfort that is almost ungraspable in the city, creating a sense of welcome despite the unfamiliarity.

For me 鈥� and it seems for my three fellow Philadelphians 鈥� EMU is a place unlike any other. It builds up future leaders, whether they know it when they graduate or not, and creates a sense of community that begs to be repeated. Myself, I hope to bring the best of EMU back to Philadelphia, where I plan to re-settle after my EMU sojourn is over.

The transition here may be difficult for some, what with the tallest building in the valley being a feed mill, and the only train in town screaming its early arrival each morning. Yet, the challenges faced in the difficulty are what make EMU worth each step to class, each quiet day, and each breath of fresh mountain air.