Spring Break
Exhibit uses multimedia to examine oppression
Samie Hartley
Issue date: 4/10/07 Section: News
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"The Tunnel of Oppression is a multi-sensory experience that has six rooms that are meant to inform and prompt critical thinking," said Hyon Chu Yi-Baker, director of the MOSAIC Cross Cultural Center.
Located in the Barrett Ballroom, the Tunnel of Oppression is an exhibit that features themed rooms created by student organizations. The rooms address types of oppression such as sexism, racism and heterosexism through posters, video, audio, timelines and photo displays.
Victor Ly, a senior majoring in psychology and business management, said he helped design the gay and lesbian room, presented by Queers Thoughtfully Interrupting Prejudice, and hopes the tunnel will provide a powerful experience for students.
"I hope that as people come face to face with oppression, they will understand that there are still numerous groups in our great nation who still face discrimination and are oppressed even today," Ly said. "I am hoping that people will be educated by the different rooms of the tunnel and that participants of the Tunnel of Oppression will commit themselves to challenging various forms of oppression."
Clarissa Trogdon, a freshman majoring in justice studies, said she learned a lot by walking through the tunnel.
"It had a lot of information about a bunch of stuff that is going wrong in society," Trogdon said. "All the rooms were really interesting. The date rape room had a lot of statistics that you normally don't hear about."
The date and acquaintance rape room is hosted by Alpha Kappa Delta Phi in honor of Valerie Zavala, a sorority sister who died as a victim of acquaintance rape, said Eva Ho, a sophomore majoring in marketing.
"By raising the awareness of this issue," Ho said, "we want other students to experience the realities of date rape and acquaintance rape, and learn how to avoid this type of situation."
She said students should visit the Tunnel of Oppression so that they can see and feel what oppression is like.
"The experience should not only educate, but also challenge people's perceptions of injustice and issues that affect today's world," Ho said. "While not everyone will enjoy such a harsh experience, students should attend this event in order to educate themselves and become more aware of the realities of oppression in this world."
Naveeb Tadjvar, a freshman majoring in nursing, said the experience was educational.
"It was cool," Tadjvar said. "I learned a lot of facts about our society. I liked the Palestine room the most because not a lot of people know about what is going on over there. I was impressed it was there."
The occupation Palestine room is hosted by Students for Change. The exhibit features pictures of Israeli prejudice toward Palestinians, and maps of Israeli occupation in Palestine.
Sarah Morris, a member of Students for Change and a junior majoring in nursing, said the purpose of the room is "to educate people about the suffering of the Palestinian people as a result of the Israeli occupation."
Donna Wallach, a community member who supports Students for Change, said there would be a person stationed at the room throughout the day to insure that the room isn't damaged.
Wallach said there was initially some protest about the room by event organizers who were hesitant to okay it because the theme might be offensive.
Debra Griffith, director of Student Conduct and Ethical Development and one of the event's organizers, declined to comment about the Palestine room.
Andrew Schwartz, a 2006 SJSU graduate, returned to campus to hand out information to represent the other side of the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Schwartz said the oppression Palestine room was "one-sided," so he was here to distribute flyers to show Israel's point of view to people as they exited the Barrett Ballroom.
"People don't know the other side," Schwartz said. "We just want to show the other side. Education is two parts."
Students who want to further discuss the issues presented in the tunnel have the opportunity to record their thoughts about the experience on videotape in the Action Room at the end of the tunnel, said Griffith, one of the event organizers. The video will be posted on MySpace once the tunnel closes.
The Action Room also has fliers available to students who want more information about oppression in society and what they can do about it.
Before students exit the entire experience, there are facilitators available to speak with students in case they want to talk about their reactions to the messages presented in the exhibit.
Yi-Baker, one of the exhibit's organizers, said she encourages all visitors of the Tunnel of Oppression to have a "debriefing" with a facilitator.
"We want people to take action and have a sense of responsibility to take action," Yi-Baker said. "Students can meet with a facilitator to sort through their feelings and talk about it. That's when education happens."
**Tunnel of Oppression Hours**
Tuesday, April 10 ---- 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Wednesday, April 11 ---- 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
**Room themes**
Date and Acquaintance Rape (Alpha Kappa Delta Phi)
Occupation Palestine (Students for Change)
Reconstructing the Home on Our Terms (Women's 101 - Maria Ochoa)
Gay and Lesbian (Queers Thoughtfully Interrupting Prejudice)
Latino Poverty & Immigration (Sigma Lambda Beta)
Injustice Veteranos (Akbayan)
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