THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2013
CAMPUS
PAGE 7A
Students confront suicide, other problems honestly
AMELIA ARVESEN
aarvesen@kansan.com
Sticks and stones may break bones, but words can seep in and kill the soul slowly. Even in daily conversation, many students don't realize how their word choices can contribute to someone else's inner battle.
The Office of Multicultural Affairs is raising awareness of global, national and local persecution with the Tunnel of Oppression, an intensive, interactive multimedia experience. Tours last 30 minutes and aim to tap into buried emotions and address current issues.
"Many students have personal experiences that relate to the images," said Ashley Tso, graduate assistant and social justice programmer for the OMA. "They may think they've gotten over them, but this brings out old feelings."
The offices, classrooms and restrooms in the Sabatini Multicultural Resource Center have been transformed to make room for role-plays, slideshows, exhibits and a gallery of real cases involving individuals deeply affected by each type of oppression. Participants witness sensitive topics including
dating violence, body image influences, hazing, homophobia, racism, sexism and anti-Semitism.
The restroom mirrors are scrawled with hurtful words. A door slams, followed by yelling, symbolizing an abusive relationship. These are just two of the scenes that unfold in the tunnel.
"It's heavy because it's so internalized, so personal, and yet it's shared by so many others," said Mauricio Gomez, a retention specialist with the OMA.
According to hazingprevention.org, 55 percent of college students involved in on-campus clubs, teams and organizations experience hazing. While students may not be directly affected, the tunnel was created to inform students that it is prevalent in the community.
"I think sometimes people want to ignore it, " Gomez said. "Some people have
During the tour, DaKie Washington, a sophomore from Manhattan, grieved the loss of his friend who became a victim to hateful words and committed suicide. DaKie couldn't ignore the loud, degrading music playing as he walked through the gallery, displaying the many lives lost to oppression.
some people have the privilege of living their entire life without knowing that this exists. So it's heavy for some, especially for those seeing it for the first time."
"The negative connotations and words that they used in the type of music was very difficult to listen to." Washington said. "I don't think people realize music like that is still being made."
Every detail in the experience is placed intentionally to involve
DaKie Washington discusses the suicide of a friend. The Tunnel of Oppression is open for tours today and tomorrow.
"We want people to no longer feel like outsiders."
ASHLEY TSO OMA social justice programmer
the senses.
the situations are true and are based on the college population, whether at the University or other institutions.
"For people who are resistant to the ideas, come with a friend," said Precious Porras, the associate director of the OMA. "These things
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
are happening around you all the time anyways. We're just bringing them to light."
After the tour, participants have the chance to process what they experience with trained professional counselors like Gomez. In past years, he said students have left with heavy hearts but the goal is to spark conversations, peak interest and increase awareness.
"Once other people become aware of what they're actually saying, campus becomes a more positive and inclusive community," Tso
The program has been presented to the University's community since 2001 and more than 600 participants made their way through the tunnel last spring. On Dec. 4, the OMA will conduct a follow-up discussion to reveal the emotions that still linger with participants
said. "We want people to no longer feel like outsiders."
"People just walk around like these things are no big deal, but go experience it," Washington said. "Once you get in the tunnel, you'll feel how real it is."
Tours in the Tunnel of Oppression begin every hour between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Thursday and Friday in the Sabatini Multicultural Resource Center. The tunnel will also be available in the spring. Students are encouraged to contact the OMA at any time with questions or to discuss concerns.
Edited by Jessica Mitchell
ACADEMIA
Theatre professor helps students connect with Shakespeare
KATIE MCBRIDE kmcbride@kansan.com
Though many students may groan with despair at the thought of deliving into the lines of a Shakespearean play, a University of Kansas theatre professor believes that performing Shakespeare can "make the words indispensable" when their meaning is unlocked.
Paul Meier, a theatre professor and Shakespeare scholar, recently released the 2013 edition of his e-book, "Voicing Shakespeare," a comprehensive guide to understanding and connecting with Shakespearean pieces in order to perform them well. The book covers breaking down the text to clarify the meaning, voice and speech lessons, and ways to use the body while acting, among other topics.
Halley Lapin is a senior from Overland Park who has several of Meier's classes, and worked with Meier for a play she acted in during her freshman year.
"Paul's lessons revolutionized the way I look at and work through the
text," Lapin said. "I not only know what the text is saying, but how I can most effectively say it."
Bringing together his extensive experience with acting and directing Shakespeare, Meier lays the groundwork to allow actors to be successful with Shakespeare's works. The e-book incorporates video demonstrations and audio recordings of the lessons, so readers can hear and see the ways in
which the strategies are implemented.
are implemented.
"Most students' experience with Shakespeare comes from the dull boredom of an English classroom" Meier said.
In fact, Meier said that Shakespeare's works were never intended to be read
"pretty poetry," said Meier; they are words that the character needs to say. If the actor can tap into the character's deep need for words, they can make the words their own and make a 400-year-old language sound fresh and new.
During her freshman year, Lapin played a fairy in "A Midsummer Night's Dream," directed by Meier. The performance of that play centered around the incorporation of
"There's still so much we can learn about our own selves from this text and the performance of it."
as literature, they were meant to be listened to, and it was the actor's responsibility to give meaning to the words in order to make them come alive.
The words are more than just
HAILEY LAPIN
Overland Park senior
original pronunciation,
in which the actors speak
the way they did in Shakespeare's time.
Linguists are able to determine what speech must have
sounded like 400 years ago by written descriptions of spoken language and through the examination of the words in the play that should rhyme, Meier said.
"Original pronunciation kind of
sounds like pirate Irish speak," Lap- in said.
Edited by Sarah Kramer
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Even though the words and way of saying them are very different from the students' everyday language. Meier tries to teach them to invest in the language so they are able to conjure up a feeling and time. The words then make more sense to the audience.
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"It is the biggest rush, the biggest high," Lapin said of the feeling she got from understanding and connecting with performing Shakespeare. "There still so much we can learn about our own selves from this text and the performance of it."
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