Texas Wesleyan Cancels Play After Students Say Use of Slur Is Harmful

The playwright mentioned that his intentions had been for the efficiency to be traditionally correct. To him, the previous shouldn’t be sanitized — and he mentioned that the racial slur was used provocatively, for viewers members to really feel the influence it has had in actual life. The scene portrays one of many play’s three college students, who’s white, displaying the Black pupil how he can be handled on their journey. Coaching periods just like the one portrayed had been frequent on the time and had been supposed to assist individuals perceive the severity of the habits they might face.

Mr. Brown, who joined the listening session on a video name, mentioned the play appears to have develop into a catalyst for a dialogue about racial relations on campus that’s separate from his work.

“Because the dialog went on, a pair college students went up and checked out my picture on the display screen and mentioned, ‘It’s not your play, Mr. Brown; it’s simply not the play at this place, presently,’” he mentioned in an interview.

Final college 12 months, the president of the Black Pupil Affiliation went on a starvation strike to boost consciousness of the shortage of range on Texas Wesleyan’s campus. Among the many sources of her discontent: The college didn’t have substantial lessons centered on ethnic or racial research, regardless of having a various pupil physique; and no established multicultural middle existed for college students to convene.

The protest, together with different suggestions from college students about considerations with the campus local weather and variety, prompted the college to announce earlier this 12 months that it could emphasize “group, engagement and inclusion” by means of a strategic plan, which included measures equivalent to incorporating multiculturalism, inclusion and anti-intolerance in its curriculum; partaking in culturally related instructing to attach with college students of numerous backgrounds; and figuring out an area on campus for multicultural pupil packages.

Nonetheless, the discussions across the play confirmed that college students’ grievances had not been addressed to the extent they needed, mentioned Jaylon Leonard, president of the coed physique.

“It was not the play itself, however about some issues that we had handled up to now with the varsity in regard to range and inclusion lately that weren’t unanswered,” he mentioned, including that “for this to be thrown on high of these points, it was one thing that we weren’t prepared to just accept.”