CMYK
THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF INDIANAPOLIS
VOL.
96
I S S UE 4
reflector.uindy.edu
NOVEMBER 8, 2017
Ambassador welcomed to campus Mathilde Mukantabana, the Ambassador of the Republic of Rwanda to the United States, visited UIndy as part of International Education Month By Abby Land FEATURE EDITOR International Education Month neared its end at the University of Indianapolis with the Oct. 27 visit of the Ambassador of the Republic of Rwanda to the United States Mathilde Mukantabana. Mukantabana met with a small group of students for questions and discussion before a public presentation detailing the events of her life and women-centered developmental projects in Rwanda. Mukantabana worked as a tenured professor of history at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento, Cal., from 1994 to 2013. She is also the co-founder and president of Friends of Rwanda Association, a nonprofit American relief organization founded after the 1994 genocide of the Tutsi ethnic group in Rwanda, which took the lives of several members of Mukantabana’s family. During the small student discussion, Mukantabana said that part of avoiding a repetition of violence is increased education and awareness of history. “In Rwanda, the genocide against the Tutsis is discussed pretty often. It is something that we keep in our memory— especially as part of teaching the new generations—because we truly believe to understand our history, and especially to know where we are going, is always to go back,” Mukantabana said. “Not only that, but also for the sake of commemoration. Genocide, from a historical perspective, was yesterday. It was a generation; people are still affected. Some of the choices we make as a country are still in rebuilding infrastructure, but also the people who went through that horrible period.” Following the discussion, Mukantabana took the stage in Ruth Lilly Performance Hall to further discuss Rwanda’s recovery both economically and socially. She emphasized the role of women in the reconstruction of the nation by pointing out that women make up 64 percent of Rwanda’s parliament, which is one of the
highest rates in the world. That statistic made an impression on international relations graduate student Luanna Vitoy, who said she enjoyed Mukantabana’s description of the role women continue to play in the rebuilding of Rwanda following the genocide. “The most interesting [part] was the political commitment to making men and women more equal,” Vitoy said. “There is a political branch that deals with gender inequality, and 64 percent of their parliament is composed of women. Representation of women is very important.” Following the genocide, Mukantabana launched the social work program at the National University of Rwanda in 1999. She has devoted most of her professional life to domestic and international projects and conferences concerning human rights issues worldwide. Mukantaba’s dedication to global human rights issues has resulted in her receiving numerous honors, including the 2012 Peace and Justice Award from the Center for African Peace and Conflict Resolution and the Peace and Global Peace Award by Global Majority. She is an active Board Member of the Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Sonoma State University in California. She also belongs to many local and international organizations, such as the International Association of Genocide Scholars and the Organization of African Leaders in Diaspora which she cofounded and for which she currently acts as board chair. According to Mukantabana, rebuilding Rwandan society—or any society—is a process that necessitates unity from people of all backgrounds and genders. “The process [of rebuilding] is not a one-way street; it is actually multidimensional, she said. “When you talk about progress in any country, it is because we are allowed to come together as people. We couldn’t have done it otherwise, because we rely much on working together correctively. So it means that if people are separate, we will never be able to achieve anything.”
Photos contributed by Todd Moore
Ambassador of the Republic of Rwanda to the United States Mathilde Mukantabana spoke about Rwanda’s development and the role of women in the process. In a meeting with a small group of students prior to her lecture, she spoke about the 1994 Tutsi genocide and how Rwandans use their memories of it to move forward.
Daniel Daudu remembered Immigrants, refugees By Maia Gibson NEWS EDITOR
Even after graduating from the University of Indianapolis in 2015, Omokhoje “Daniel” Daudu was no stranger to campus. He only lived a few blocks away, so he continued to work out
in the Ruth Lilly Fitness Center weight room, attend the men’s basketball games and visit Head Men’s Basketball Coach Stan Gouard and Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Suzanne Willey, among others. Willey described Daudu as “a positive light with whoever he was interacting with” and said that he touched many lives during his time at UIndy.
Photo contributed by Stan Gouard
Alumnus Omokhoje “Daniel” Daudu played guard for the men’s basketball team for three seasons during his years at UIndy. He graduated in 2015 with a degree in marketing and had recently started a job with Toyota.
On Oct. 27, driving southbound on I-65 on his way to work, a large part of the rear of a semi driving north broke off and struck his car. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the Indianapolis Star. Daudu was born in Lagos, Nigeria, but came to the United States when he was 15 so he could eventually play college basketball, according to Gouard. He played for the national teams in Nigeria before moving to Carbondale, Ill., in 2008 to have a better chance of playing college basketball. Daudu finished his junior and senior years of high school at Brehm Preparatory School, playing for its basketball team and living with a host family, according to the UIndy Athletics website. Gouard’s wife is from Carbondale, so he was able to ask around about Daudu, who passed every test, Gouard said. “. . . At the time, the head coach at SIU [Southern Illinois University] Carbondale was Chris Lowery, and he was a good friend of mine,” Gouard said. “And when I called him and asked him about Daniel, he thought he [Daudu] was a really good player and person. So my question to Chris was, ‘Do I take him?’ And he [Lowery] said, ‘It’s a no-brainer.’” Daudu came on an official college visit shortly thereafter and decided to attend UIndy, according to Gouard. While he attended UIndy, Daudu played for the men’s basketball team for three seasons, one of which he was redshirted with an injury. In addition to basketball, he was an avid soccer player, Gouard said, which helped him perform better on the court. Daudu was also a loyal teammate, supporting the team even after he could no longer play, according to Willey. He also pushed his teammates and himself to be better. “He was an awesome teammate because of how hard he worked and pushed,” Gouard said. “I thought he was
> See Daudu on page 3
share their experiences By Angie Mercado ONLINE EDITOR
Speakers at the In Their Own Words: Storytelling by Immigrants and Refugees event shared stories of sacrifice, hard work and the American dream on Oct. 30 in the Annis Theater in the Health Pavilion. The speakers shared stories about leaving their home countries in search of a better life in the United States and described their lives now. The event began with guest speaker Una Har tz ell-Baird from Bosnia. When war broke out in Bosnia, her parents made the decision to leave and seek refuge in the United States, Baird, who was young at the time, talked about not being able to understand why her family made the choice to move and leave everything they knew behind. Baird did not understand the sacrifice that her parents had made, she said. It was because of family members in the states that they were able to get sponsored and obtain refugee status to stay legally in the United States. Upon their arrival, they received three months worth of food stamps and Medicaid but were expected to stand on their own feet after the time was up. Baird said that seeing what her parents had to go through was difficult. They were in their 40s and had to get accustomed to a new way of life. Some saw this as a weakness and would take advantage of her parents. Baird said she was hesitant to learn a
new language and to explore her new life. One of the biggest culture shocks for her came when she began school and noticed all the diversity in the classroom, which was rare in Bosnia. She said it took her time to adjust, but now she embraces her roots and diversity. She has a one-year-old child and said she can’t imagine having to do everything her parents did for her when she was young. Next was Christopher Bawi, an English and history major from Burma. Bawi talked about the military coup in 1962 that led to the 1988 democratic uprising in Burma that forced him to move to the U.S. Bawi spoke about the idea he had about what the American dream was because of what he had seen in the media. He said he imagined life in the states as seen in movies, where everyone is just relaxing on a beach. All the propaganda painted a picture of an easy life, Bawi said. Once he was here, he realized that was not the case. He had to start with a factory job and now is preparing to graduate from UIndy. “It’s a totally different struggle. We have to start everything from scratch,” Bawi said. Bawi currently is focusing on his education. He said that he hopes eventually to earn a Ph.D. “When I finish with everything, I want to go back and share this experience,” Bawi said. “I want to share about this human society and share about American values and American education.” Isaias Guerrero, a 2009 UIndy
“It’s a totally different struggle. We have to start everything from scratch.”
> See Stories on page 10