The Whiteness at Wes forum, organized by Confronting Racism and White Privilege Project (CRAWP), brought together nearly 30 students of varying racial backgrounds to talk about what whiteness means at the University.

The meeting began with a vow of confidentiality due to the sensitive topic, so names were not used. Participants began by mulling over the definitions of terms like “whiteness,” “white privilege,” and “white supremacy,” which written on paper and taped to the walls.

“Students who identify with two or more ethnicities have a tough time sorting out where they stand in these matters, and it gets even more complicated when you consider their skin color or last name,” one student said.

Following this activity, note cards were handed out and participants were asked to answer three questions. The note cards were then shuffled and redistributed to be read aloud.

“How has whiteness affected you in the past week at Wesleyan?” read the first question.

“In class, my professor sought out the views of a student of color because the subject was slavery,” one student said in response to the first question.

“I don’t have to worry about a peer or a professor assuming I’m here because of affirmative action,” said another student.

“How has white privilege affected you in the past week at Wesleyan?” read the second question.

“Someone pointed out that there were no books by women of color on our syllabus and my white privilege allowed me not to comment,” a student said.

The third and final question read, “Why are you here today?”

“[I’m here] because I recently realized that I am in almost every privileged group,” said a student.

In general, students seemed eager to understand the various viewpoints of their fellow students and attended the forum to learn how to do so. Discussion picked up when students separated into groups and focused on a few issues at a time. Some groups zeroed in on the push for equal percentages of students of color and white students on campus.

“I think people want increased numbers to prove equal opportunity, but the percentage of minorities on campus doesn’t directly relate to the opportunity offered each student,” one student said. “It’s not that simple.”

The idea of guilt as a part of white privilege was also raised in the forum.

“Which is more of a privilege: Feeling guilty about being white or not thinking about it?” one student asked.

Other groups considered ways of dealing with openly racist statements.

“If somebody says something offensive in a large group of people, do you correct them to teach everybody else a lesson, even though you’re also alienating the speaker?” one student asked.

“It’s probably best to take the conversation outside and confront them alone,” another student answered. “Unfortunately, the group of people will get the wrong idea.”

The discussion ended with all participants using an adjective to describe how they felt about the preceding forum. Many students expressed feelings of hopefulness, but many also expressed confusion and confliction, as well as disappointment because so few students showed up to participate.

“I had a lot more I wanted to discuss, but there’s never enough time,” one student said.