PULLMAN, Wash.- “Not in Our Universities/Not in Our Communities: Community Dialogue,” is the theme for an open forum Monday, Jan. 26, that begins a series of activities and events for Washington State University and the Pullman/Moscow area in support of community, civility and social justice.
The forum, set for 7-10 p.m. in WSU’s Compton Union Building Carey Ballroom, is open to the public without charge. Bill Wassmuth, executive director of the Northwest Coalition Against Malicious Harassment, is the featured speaker and facilitator. WSU Provost Gretchen Bataille and University of Idaho Associate Provost Dene Thomas also will speak.
Wassmuth, an Idaho native, currently serves as chair of the Washington State Advisory Committee of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission. He received the Rosa Parks Award from the American Association for Affirmative Action in 1995, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Award from the National Education Association in 1993 and the Coeur d’Alene Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Citizen of the Year Award in 1985.
Wassmuth holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and master’s degrees in theology and religious education. He was granted an honorary doctorate by Albertson’s College, Caldwell, Idaho, in 1994.
Recent posting of flyers and other acts of hatred in the region have produced a resounding statement against all expressions of discrimination from the university, the City of Pullman and the larger community, said interim WSU graduate school dean Karen DePauw, chair of the series organizing committee.
She said the working group for a Hate-Free University/Community has been developed to coordinate efforts and offer a series of activities throughout 1998. Scheduled for the upcoming year are conversations in residence halls, response procedures, curriculum infusion and the establishment of a listserve and web site.
In these efforts, WSU will collaborate with UI, the cities of Pullman and Moscow and other groups to promote a sense of shared community and social justice, said DePauw.
For more information about the forum and to join the efforts, contact DePauw at 509/335-6424 or at kpdepauw@wsu.edu.
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