This year’s symposium examined issues of race and ethnicity in connection with media and communication. In a three-day series of panel discussions and lectures, we explored the role of media technology in shaping individual self-definition and cross-cultural interaction. Among the questions we addressed were: How does the Internet bring communities together and further divide them? In what ways might social media serve as an agent for change and reconstruction of our identities? How have marginalized communities found a voice in the digital world?
The concluding event was a performance of the Race Monologues, written and performed by a group of Lewis & Clark students. Always a highlight of the symposium, the Race Monologues is an emotionally charged and thoughtful expression of students’ experiences with racism, ethnicity, and personal identity.
The symposium also included a student-curated art exhibition featuring work by artists from our campus and the Portland community.
