Acting Out Against Hate

By Rick Belbutoski
 
Two months after Ball State’s College of Communication, Information, and Media (CCIM) had its Super Party, the controversial image discovered there has practically been forgotten.

According to WCRD news reporter Cameron Ridle, a crude drawing of a black person being lynched was discovered on the digital board of the Ball Communication Building’s second floor at approximately 9:50 p.m. following the January 17^th event. 

The WCRD story received some feedback. There were many comments on the WCRD website, including one from the President of The Black Student Association (BSA). The Muncie Star wrote an article about it, and even the Ball State’s Vice President of Communication and Marketing released a statement. Within two weeks, however, another act of hate was committed in the CCIM complex.

Two weeks after the image was found on the digital board, a “Safe Zone” sign was torn from a professor’s office door in the Letterman Building and crumpled up while a message of hate was scribbled on an Indiana Public Radio bumper sticker which was on the same professor’s bulletin board. “Safe Zone” signs signify where members of the LGBTQ community can find a person trained to support members of the community with struggles they may be experiencing.  Sadly, this act of hate was met with an even less substantial response than the digital board drawing. 

Anyone who cares about encouraging diversity must question why these two acts of hate drew such different responses from Ball State University, who didn’t comment on the second incident, but chose words artfully to minimize the uproar about the image found on the digital board.  What could have been the positives and negatives of having a conversation about hate on campus?

The good news is that these thoughts are going to be given some attention this week. On Thursday, February 27^th, CCIM is sponsoring a Dialoguing Diversity Symposium from 1-4 p.m. in The Letterman Building. A group of five students have put together a project specifically for the symposium. The project, titled #stophate365, is a multimedia campaign that aims to raise awareness about acts of hate on Ball State’s campus, educating and encouraging students to stand up to these prejudicial messages. You can join the campaign by tweeting at #stophate365 and attending the symposium Thursday afternoon. Those who can or cannot attend can come by the project group’s table to sign a banner that will be placed in the Letterman Lobby to express how they stand up against messages of hate.