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Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Prof Backs Out of Diversity Seminar

By Olivier Uyttebrouck
Journal Staff Writer
    A University of New Mexico professor who had planned to lead a workshop on "white privilege" at a conference Thursday has withdrawn from the event, organizers said.
    The decision followed complaints from about a dozen Sandia National Laboratories employees who said they were upset by a description of the workshop circulated by e-mail to lab workers.
    The description says that, "Recent studies suggest that whites' lack of awareness of other cultures has to do with whites' commitment to maintaining higher social status, or 'white privilege.' ''
    Ricky Lee Allen, a professor of language, literacy and sociocultural studies, notified conference leaders late last week that he would not present the seminar. Allen could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
    The workshop was among 10 planned in connection with a Diversity Leadership Council Forum scheduled Thursday at the Albuquerque Convention Center. The conference is sold out.
    The response to the workshop shows "we have more work to do," said Dr. Charles Becknell, chairman of the Diversity Leadership Council.
    "I thought we were further along than that," he said Tuesday. "I thought we could have a dialogue about these things."
    The purpose of the forum is to promote diversity and tolerance in the workplace, he said.
    "White privilege" workshops are a staple at diversity forums, said Rita Martinez-Purson, dean of UNM's Continuing Education, which organized the forum.
    The workshops are intended to make people aware of biases and worldviews they may not know they have, she said.
    A 2003 diversity conference in Albuquerque featured a half-day workshop on white privilege, Martinez-Purson said. Such events have never drawn complaints in the past, she said.
    "It's not an unusual topic at all," she said Tuesday. "If you Google 'white privilege,' you can find whole conferences on the topic."