[NLA] COABE conference

[AndresMuro@aol.com]

Margery: thanks, and I'll be attending your pannel, but feel free to refer to 
anything that I may write.  I hope that lots of people attened your pannet 
and explore these difficult questions. 

Andres

In a message dated 5/16/2002 9:39:27 AM Mountain Daylight Time, 
Freemannola at aol.com writes:


> Hooray, Andres!  You did a marvelous job of explaining how difficult 
> authentic cross-cultural discussions can be.  With your permission, I would 
> like to use your explanation about "fair" and "unfair" perceptions of how 
> we come to discussions about racism in our upcoming (May 28-29)  "Literacy 
> and Racism" preconference in San Diego (LLA/LVA national conference).  Or, 
> if you are there, you can make the case yourself!  Thank you for speaking 
> so clearly to a difficult topic. 
>       Those of us who are white live in the U.S. with such unacknowledged 
> --even unasked for! --privileges.  We truly are not aware of many of them,  
> such as the assumption that meetings should be run according to rules that 
> seem "fair" but which  are sometimes difficult for persons of other 
> cultures to fit in to.  Here's a story you might enjoy:  A few years ago, a 
> colleague of mine who is African American was trying to find her voice in a 
> meeting.  When the chairman ruled her out of order and told her that the 
> meeting was being conducted according to "Robert's Rules of Order" she was 
> thunderstuck!  "Who is Robert?" she asked.  "And why don't we know his last 
> name?"   
>       The chasm between different cultural groups can be bridged as we 
> begin to learn more about ourselves.  I often ask my white brothers and 
> sisters to think about what we bring to the multicultural table.  Or do we 
> think we have the right simply to set the rules and then watch? 
>       Hmmmmm. 
>       Margery Freeman 


andresmuro at aol.com
Visit my art webpage at: http://www.geocities.com/andresmuro/artwork.html
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