By Charlie McKee

On Thursday evening, Feb. 16, the Democratic Party of Grant County hosted the second in its series of monthly forums on topics of interest to voters in the 2012 National Election. The topic of this forum was “Confronting Race and Ethnicity.”

As at each forum, the format was a presentation of individual views on the topic by the panel members, followed by a Question & Answer session between the audience and panel. The forum was moderated by Gilda Baeza-Ortego, University Librarian of WNMU's Miller Library, and the panelists were: Isaac Brundage, WNMU VP Student Affairs; Peter Garcia, Native American Poet; Juan Castanon, former MeCHA President; and Dr. Emma Bailey, WNMU Department of Social Sciences.

The program was introduced by WNMU Scholar in Residence Felipe de Ortego y Gasca, PhD, with a presentation on the background of human classification by “race.”  Dr. Ortego y Gasca noted that the introduction of “scientific racism” by Joseph Arthur Comte de Gobineau in the mid-1800s was the seed of many of the problems extending into the 21st century.  He stated that the key to our success in overcoming these issues in this century is in “how candid, honest, and forthcoming we can be with each other” about this difficult issue.

After the introduction, each of the panelists expressed their views regarding “Confronting Race and Ethnicity” as follows:
•    Isaac Brundage – Mr. Brundage began his talk by reading the evocative poem, For My People by Margaret Walker.  He then discussed his experiences in having been chosen as a trainer for a specialized team in Ft. Myers, Florida, to overcome extreme divisiveness in one of the most segregated towns in the United States.  The team, “Cultural Bridges Cadre,” discovered that teachers in the area were not only ill-equipped to cope with racial issues among their students, they could not even discuss the issues among themselves.  They left the sessions rather than confront these issues, which was a startling revelation.  Mr. Brundage then drew the parallel to dealing with issues of race and ethnicity at WNMU, stating that unless diversity is one of the “core values” at WNMU, it will not be properly addressed in the classroom, nor will students be prepared to deal with it in “real life.”

•    Peter Garcia – A self-described “bargain-basement Indian,” Mr. Garcia is a “half-breed” of Mexican and Hopi descent.  He noted that the European consciousness of greed, which sent the conquistadors and other colonists searching for treasure at the expense of indigenous populations, is the root of many of our problems today.  One clear indication of this in our own Native American culture, according to Mr. Garcia, is documented in a study of the current pervasive hopelessness of 7- to 10-year-old Native American children by Dr. Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart.  Her studies also document the excessively high rates of depression and suicide in Native American adults, which are double that of the U.S. average.

•    Juan Castanon – Mr. Castanon was born in Santa Rita, Grant County, and followed in his father’s footsteps, working in the mine and supporting the labor union.  After having been disabled in a mine accident, Mr. Castanon attended WNMU in the 1980s and became MeCHA President in 1989.  At that time, he spearheaded an effort to study the composition of the workforce at WNMU, whose pure numbers were misleadingly egalitarian at half white and half Hispanic.  When the composition of the workforce was studied in detail, however, MeCHA discovered that the professional staff was predominantly white and the non-professional staff was predominantly Hispanic and that hiring practices for professors were blatantly discriminatory in favor of whites.  Mr. Castanon would like to see a reprise of this study done today at WNMU, as well as raising student awareness through other activities such as WNMU presentations of the 1950s Salt of the Earth film about the mine strike and skits about local events and cultural issues.

•    Dr. Emma Bailey – Dr. Bailey explained that, as a sociologist with a background in racial studies, her role is to research social patterns, explain the data, and potentially prescribe ameliorative action.  One social pattern in the post-Civil Rights era that has been documented by the 2010 Census is that the disparity among the races in this country has not changed since the Jim Crow era.  The disparity is measured by the following indicators: level of income, education, employment opportunity, representation in government and big business, and access to medical care.  What has changed since the Civil Rights era is that whites are not as revealing about their true attitudes regarding race issues.  This shift in attitude has resulted in “Racism without Racists,” as proposed by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, Professor of Sociology, in his book of the same name.  In this context, Dr. Bailey concluded by quoting Cornel West’s point that Obama’s election was a symbol of equal opportunity in this country, but that we must “move from symbol to substance” in the future.

During the audience/panel Question and Answer Session, the discussion included the following points:
1)    In response to various questions, Mr. Garcia noted the following:
a.    Silver City is one of the most racist communities Mr. Garcia has ever lived in.
b.    There are virtually no youth programs and no social service agencies here.
c.    MRAC funding and sponsorship are not available to non-white events.
d.    The community must take responsibility to provide these services, some examples of which are a new writing program at the new Bayard Library and a poetry program at Yucca Lodge.

 
2)    Dr. Bailey responded to a question regarding the lack of WNMU classes focusing on diversity studies by stating that some classes do exist, but their titles may not reflect a diversity focus.  She also noted that there are only two sociologists currently teaching at WNMU and that diversity and ethnic studies must become part of WNMU’s core values, as Mr. Brundage stated, before there will be a more comprehensive program.  She believes that the new administration may be more open to this than previous administrations have been.

3)    Mr. Brundage was asked whether WNMU could provide leadership to help disadvantaged children in our community.  He stated that his past experience had shown him that it is critical to demonstrate to children, over and over again, what success looks like and feels like.  However, he noted that before WNMU can provide leadership in this area, it must first understand the issues within WNMU.  He also believes that ethnic diversity among the WNMU faculty, staff, and administration should reflect the demographics of its students.

The next Democratic Party Election Forum will be held at 6:30 pm on Thursday, March 15, 2012.