PVCC Puma Press: March 2005

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	(Photo By Jeopardy Jaramillo)
	Leroy Hunter current BSU advisor, who will be leaving PVCC at the end of this spring semester, shares experiences with crowd.
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The theme “Unity in the Community” set the foundation for this month’s black history celebrations.

Centered on the continual building of a diverse society, the African American Employee Association sponsored events throughout the month to celebrate the similarities of all in the community.

At the opening ceremony and luncheon on Feb. 2, Keynote Speaker Dr. Mary Kay Kickels, PVCC President, spoke of the college’s awareness of and the importance of inclusiveness.

“Diversity at PVCC means acknowledging, valuing and celebrating the differences as well as similarities,” Dr. Kickels said, “’Other’ isn’t a frightening thing, but indeed something to get to know and embrace.”

The Black Student Union was also involved in the opening ceremony. Student Kia Smith delivered a speech about the importance of positive thought, and her pride of ancestry.

“February is a time to celebrate but every day of every month is a time to appreciate our heritage and continue to contribute to our history,” Smith said.

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	(Photo By Jeopardy Jaramillo)
	PVCC President Mary Kay Kickels was the keynote speaker Feb. 2, for the opening luncheon for Black History Month.
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Dr. Arnette Ward, former President of Chandler Gilbert, presented an uplifting rendition of “Amazing Grace,” and quoted one of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s favorite hymns:

“If I can help somebody as I pass along,/ If I can cheer somebody with a word or song,/ If I can show somebody he is traveling wrong,/ Than my living shall not be in vain.”

Dr. Kickels summed up the overall meaning of the afternoon when she said, “Celebrate each other’s gifts. It takes a deep personal decision, claiming how we are alike to form deep connections, not exceptions.”

On Feb. 15, Media Services showed the film “Shades of Guilt” at a lunch time presentation. The film focused on a white male who, on his way home on a rainy night, drives by a black male who is being beaten by a group of white men. Though he pauses, he does not stop to help the young man. The next morning he wakes and looks in the mirror to see that his complexion has darkened. The day plays again and once more but this time the man driving is the man being beaten. When the scene cuts back to the driver he looks in the rearview mirror to see his complexion has returned. As he once again drives by the man being beaten he thinks ‘What if it were me?’ and stops to let the man into his car.

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'Celebrate each other's gifts...form deep connections, not exceptions.'
—Dr. Mary Kay Kickels PVCC President
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“The film is a lesson in compassion. When an individual looks in the mirror you see your reflection, but is your outer reflection really the real you or is it your inner reflection,” Cranston Forte, Video Productions Specialist, said.

Cranston presented the video and led an open discussion with faculty and students following the video. Those in attendance discussed their experiences of ethnicity, gender and class, and shared personal stories of misperceptions and moments of compassion.

“It’s not just about the individual, it’s the system. In the U.S. we’re living in a system that has produced unconscious prejudice,” Forte said. “ But it’s not about ethnicity, it’s about the common thread that ties us all together.”