History of hate symbols taught t~ prevent future offenses from happening on Cabrini's cam-pus

SHANNON KING FEATURESEDITOR

It has often been said that people who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it. In a forum on March 20, run by political science professors Dr. James Hedtke and Dr. Jolyon Girard, on the history of hate symbols, the subject of remembering and reteaching the past came up as something that, as citizens, we all need to be responsible for.

Throughout the course of history, symbols such as the swastika and the burning cross have had several meanings. The swastika used to be a symbol of good luck and prosperity before it was adopted by the Nazis and became a symbol of raci~l oppression and

.intolerance.

According to Girard, over the years it is important to teach the past so that everyone is aware of what me:inings symbols have taken on so that we understand the potential offensiveness that our language has. He recounted a situation in an elementary school recently in which racist symbols were sprawled ·on the walls.

A reporter interviewed a fourth grade girl about her feelings about them only to find out that she had no idea what they meant.

Some people might say that they are using the swastika with its original meaning. However, "To our people, in a world where the Nazis were responsible for the death of millions of people, that symbol represents everything that human people are supposed to fight against," Girard said.

"You have to wake up each generation to what has happened in the past. If not, you get a sense of cultural amnesia," he said.

Hedtke said that any type of hate speech is a form of systematic intimidation that leads to the deprivation of rights of an_individual or a group.

In light of the recent events in Xavier Hall, several discussions have ensued in an attempt to understand the acts of the vandals.

According to Hedtke, "A person calling another person a name gives that person a sense of belonging. It makes them feel as if the person they are taunting is not one of them, making them feel more powerful. It is the act of