University video on diversity breaks barriers

Southeast Missouri State University recently published a video, the result of a social experiment aimed at opening the dialogue between people of different racial, religious and social backgrounds.

The 13-minute video has been shared far and wide.

The goal was to present something a little different at the Martin Luther King annual dinner, a video that would make people think and maybe make them uncomfortable.

The MLK Celebration Committee came up with a concept to simply have people and students of different backgrounds sit at a booth at different times on campus. In large letters at the top of the booth, were invitations to "Ask a Muslim," "Ask an African-American", "Ask an LGBTQ" and more.

This allowed for some interesting conversations to take place. Conversations ranged from a strange fascination of braided hair to white privilege.

According to Lindsay Jones' story, Kevin Windham, a member of the President's Task Force on Diversity Education at Southeast, took turns manning the "Ask an African-American" booth. One person asked why it's acceptable for black people to use the "N-word" and not whites.

"It got a little raw, but I think they understood at the end of the conversation how it affects us," Windham said.

Ultimately, the point of the video is that everyone has a different experience, and we should all be respectful of that experience. The video creators acknowledged that setting up the booths was a parody in effect, as one person cannot speak for an entire group of people.

But the exercise encouraged individuals to talk to other individuals about their differences. And the students and faculty involved demonstrated it can be done respectfully.

The nation is seriously divided among racial, religious and ethnic lines. This video, watched more than 110,000 times, plays a role in removing the barriers that make us different. And that's a good thing.