On April 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous “I have a dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. We, the students of Fairfield University, also have a dream. We have a dream that one day this campus will meet the Jesuit ideals of promoting both diversity and tolerance. We have a dream that the number of AHANA students will rise above the current 10.5 percent. We have a dream that one day we will no longer be known for the homogony of our student body, but instead for our commitment to diversity and the content of our character.
As we celebrate Black History Month, it’s appropriate to take a look inward and examine how the university handles diversity. Considering the make-up of the current Fairfield student body, achieving a respectable amount of diversity seems like a lofty goal. At the Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation on Jan. 27, Fr. Jeffrey von Arx made it his goal to increase racial, ethnic and socio-economic diversity on campus in the coming years.
Von Arx may have a losing battle ahead of him. In previous years the numbers of AHANA students had risen, or at least remained consistent. However, the class of 2008 contains 20 percent fewer AHANA students than the class of 2007. The one problem is not accepting AHANA students who apply, though; it is that Fairfield is not appealing to them.
We support von Arx in making his goals so vocal. Various groups on campus such asAHANA, SALSA and the Center for Multicultural Relations have sponsored programs and events to get out information on diverse cultures, and we commend them for doing so. Events like the convocation and this month’s Black film series are definitely strides in the right direction. If we can’t have a diverse student body right away, we can at least promote a diverse environment during events like this Black History Month.
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