DASHERS DIALOGUE ABOUT RACIAL INJUSTICE BY MADELINE ZUKOWSKI, DSHA ’11
In the wake of recent racial injustice and a push to educate fellow classmates to eradicate racism, the DSHA Student Diversity & Inclusion Council has—and are in the midst of—developing a plan to engage students. Between organizing a virtual Dasher Dialogue in early June following the death of George Floyd, to ensuring important conversations continue, the council knows the community is listening and feel it is their responsibility to help make a true difference. Ahmaud Arbery. Breonna Taylor. George Floyd. These names have become part of the community and country’s vernacular. Protests erupted all over the world while DSHA students were at home, participating in virtual learning. For many, DSHA marks a safe space to work out feelings and talk through current happenings with their friends or faculty members. Because of the social distancing required due to COVID-19, many students reached out to each other and faculty members virtually, looking for a way to discuss the recent events. Enter the DSHA Student Diversity and Inclusion Council.
Dialoguing With Other Dashers The DSHA Student Diversity and Inclusion Council, student-led and run, is made up of a dozen or so students who are passionate about promoting and celebrating diversity, equity, and engagement
within the DSHA community. They are best known around the school for running and organizing the monthly Dasher Dialogues, conversations that create a safe, open, and respectful place for students to share their thoughts and opinions, and ask questions on topics like immigration, cultural appropriation, and mental health, among others. The killing of Floyd and ensuing conversations surrounding systemic racism called for a Dasher Dialogue. The council sprang into action, organizing a dialogue over Zoom on June 9. Topics of discussion included the effects of systemic racism in the community and wider world; the death of Floyd and protests that arose from it; and the importance of educating oneself on racism and the effects of it in the country. Seventy-six faculty, staff, and students joined the conversation. “I think the Dasher Dialogue went well,” said Dami Awosika, DSHA ’21, one of the senior leaders of the council and moderator for the conversation. “We were able to talk about how the current movements affect us personally, and how systemic racism and privilege transfer into our school life. It was great to see all kinds of different people and even teachers add adequate input, offer solutions, and express their feelings.”
Justice For George Awosika first asked students to share their reactions to the death of Floyd. While she said she was
T H E W H E N A N D W H Y O F T H E S T U D E N T D I V E R S I T Y A N D I N C LU S I O N C O U N C I L 2015-2016 | The council was created when former World Languages Faculty Jim Wilkinson became the first Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator. Wilkinson reached out to the student body to ask for volunteers to create the committee. The first year, 15 student volunteers planned in-school diversity and inclusion events, including Dasher Dialogues, which began in the spring of 2016.
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2018-2019 | At this time, the council became a part of the wider DSHA Student Council, whereas they had previously operated independently. This also gave them a consistent schedule within the co-curricular S P RING 2 020 structure.
2020-2021 | Currently, 12 students serve on the committee. In the upcoming school year, they plan to run Instagram live dialogues with students and community professionals focused around current events and how they affect DSHA; plan more in-school diversity events such as Multicultural Week, Black History Month activities, etc.; and feature “wise quotes” from faculty about diversity and inclusion. To see what the council is up to, follow it on Instagram @dshadiversityinc.
