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Greetings! The Racial Awareness
Project has kind of dwindled over the past couple of years. I want to bring it back as a real force on OU’s campus. Since
I have a clean slate to start from, I have brainstormed what I would like to
see happening at OU. I imagine the RAP to
function like the United Nations, where everyone has an equal voice. No one has the upper hand; no one is in
control except for me, the Chair, who will act as a moderator. RAP will hopefully function as a kind of
discussion group, with as many students expressing themselves on race
relations and racial issues as possible. One of my main goals for
RAP is to instigate change in the hearts of humans. Change usually can only happen in small
stages, though. In RAP, I envision a
core group of members from many cultures and backgrounds developing cordial
and even friendly relationships with each other. We can start by changing ourselves, and
hopefully in time we can affect the lives of everyone at OU and beyond. Maybe it won’t
happen, but we must try. The laws have changed;
now it is time to change the way we think along racial lines. Race is a driving issue in American
society. Most people think in terms of
“black” or “white,” which leaves many cultures out of mainstream thoughts. There is no place for multiple cultures to
get together and discuss race in a safe, equal environment. Usually one or two races dominate
discussions of race relations. RAP is
a place for more equal footing. With
all cultures and races represented at OU, we can start to figure out as a
larger community what we really want in our society. How do we want race to function in -
Jessica Harper RAP President |