{"id":374,"date":"2021-12-04T01:04:48","date_gmt":"2021-12-04T01:04:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=374"},"modified":"2021-12-04T01:04:48","modified_gmt":"2021-12-04T01:04:48","slug":"ruth-simmons-at-simon-institute-talk-we-have-to-get-better-at-race-relations-the-southern","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=374","title":{"rendered":"Ruth Simmons at Simon Institute talk: 'We have to get better at race relations' – The Southern"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Ruth Simmons, president of Prairie View A&M University said institutions of higher education have a responsibility to show how different races, faiths and opinions can come together and work together.
In this screenshot from Zoom, Ruth Simmons, president of Prairie View A&M University visits with John Shaw of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale Monday.
During a virtual visit with John Shaw of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Simmons, a former administrator at Princeton and the first African-American president of an Ivy League University when she led Smith College, said improving relations is a top priority.
\u201cWe have to work at this every day,\u201d Simmons said. \u201cWe have to try and keep getting better at race relations in this country.\u201d
Simmons, who has served as president of the historically Black Prairie View A&M University since 2017, expressed concerns about the direction of public discourse today.
\u201cWhat I fear most for the country now is how we seem to be moving away from the model of working alongside with people whom we disagree with and that\u2019s a very dangerous path.\u201d
The discussion was part of the Simon Institute\u2019s on-going \u201cUnderstanding Our New World,\u201d a livestream discussion series with business, academic, governmental and civic leaders.
Simmons said she is proud of steps her university has taken since the death of George Floyd, including the establishment of a center for racial justice. The center\u2019s focus is to find ways to work with law enforcement and civic organizations. The Texas legislature\u2019s Black Caucus charged the organization with establishing a team of scholars who could advise lawmakers in an effort, as she said, \u201cto move forward.\u201d
\u201cI think there is a hunger that people have for real solutions when it comes to addressing the racial issues in this country,\u201d she added. \u201cI am hoping that universities can be intermediaries in terms of showing organizations, governments and others how to work with differences of opinion, differences of background, differences of race, ethnicity and religion. Somehow, we\u2019ve got to do that.\u201d
She described her institution\u2019s \u201cactivist-in-residence\u201d position \u2013 a staff member charged with \u201cteaching students more about their power as change agents in society,\u201d according to the university\u2019s website.
\u201cOne of the things that we don\u2019t do very well on college campuses is giving our students an understanding of how they can have an impact on society, but doing it in a way so that they understand the peaceful, well-organized ways people who have come before them have undertaken to change society,\u201d she said.
Simmons added that universities must be willing to take on difficult topics.
\u201cWe have been fond of telling the stories that we want to tell rather than the stories that we must tell,\u201d she said. \u201cTruth is a part and parcel of what we do in universities and what we must do.\u201d
A retired Marine veteran who lost people in the Vietnam war has partnered with descendants of a long line of military folks to produce a mural memorializing the military and first responders.
Marion Fire Chief Tim Barnett poses for a portrait in front of the new mural in Marion.
One side of the new mural honoring military and first responders is pictured in Marion.
A new mural has gone up in Marion honoring those in the military and first responders.\u00a0
Maddie Deiters paints her copyright onto her new mural in Marion.
Maddie Deiters poses for a portrait in front of one of her favorite parts of the mural honoring first responders and those in the military Wednesday in Marion.\u00a0
All facets of first responders were present in the new mural including a police officer and his K-9 companion.
Marion police officers pose for a portrait in front of the mural honoring first responders and those in the military Wednesday in Marion.
Maddie Deiters paints her copyright onto the mural honoring first responders and those in the military on Wednesday in Marion.\u00a0
Maddie Deiters’ favorite aspect of the mural was the eagle as it allowed her to flex her creative muscles and skills.
Ronald Osman said he hopes to add more to the mural honoring different branches of the military in the coming years.
While most of the piece came from artist Maddie Deiters\u2019 mind, she used real images in the mural, colorizing different photos from the Vietnam war for the Marines panel.\u00a0
Even the famous image of Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima\u00a0is depicted\u00a0in the mural.<\/span>
Maddie Deiters poses on Wednesday for a portrait in front of one of her favorite parts of the mural honoring first responders and those in the military.
A paint brush pictured Friday was left behind after the completion of the mural honoring first responders and those in the military.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Editor\u2019s Note: This op-ed was distributed by Capitol News Illinois on behalf of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. The opinions expressed…<\/p>\n

NASHVILLE, Tenn. \u2014 New measures that restrict how race is addressed in classrooms have spread confusion and anxiety among many educators, who in some cases have begun pulling books and canceling lessons for fear of being penalized.<\/p>\n

The New Arts Jazztet and jazz vocalist Eden Atwood will perform \u201cThe New Arts Jazztet Does Cool & Yule\u201d at The Varsity Center on Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Pending approval by the SIU Board of Trustees,\u00a0James T. Minor will serve as the 10th<\/sup>\u00a0chancellor of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.<\/p>\n

Author Margo Jefferson will discuss “Negroland,” her memoir about growing up as Black upper class in Chicago during the 1950s, Friday, Dec. 3.\u00a0
In this screenshot from Zoom, Ruth Simmons, president of Prairie View A&M University visits with John Shaw of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University Carbondale Monday.
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