Through performances and a faculty panel, two student groups brought “Joy & Justice” to the assembly hall on Jan. 9. Young Women of Color and Young Men of Color hosted the school-wide assembly, exploring how those ideas connect to build a more inclusive and equitable community.
The assembly began with a land acknowledgment statement, recognizing the multiple indigenous groups whose traditional homeland is the land of the University of Chicago. The assembly then featured a dance performance from UChicago Bhangra, a traditional dance style from the Punjab region of India and Pakistan.
Junior James Cross introduced the assembly’s theme with a quote by author J. Drew Lahman: “Joy is the justice we give ourselves.” Juliana Walker, co-president of Young Women of Color, explained the history behind affinity groups, which have recently been targeted by conservative organizations.
“Affinity groups help create a stronger culture of inclusion, reduce stress, improve self-esteem and cultural awareness for students that participate in them,” Juliana said. “When everyone is represented, the school becomes more successful as it fosters an environment where everyone contributes to and benefits from collective progress, leading to a stronger community.”
The assembly then transitioned into an interactive activity, where juniors Sahana Aggarwal and Zuri Cosey Gay read out a series of phrases that touched on students’ interests and a few of the eight core identifiers, including race and ethnicity. The activity involved students standing up if the statements resonated with them, allowing the community to look around and see people with similar identifiers.
(Ellis Calleri)
“When you looked around, you probably saw that your peers have many different interests, identifiers, and experiences,” Zuri said, “but you might have been surprised to see the people that had commonalities with you as well many of your peers that stood up more than once because of intersecting identities. This is why it is important that we as a community celebrate diversity and what makes us us.”
YWOC co-president Kaavya Peddinti and junior Adnan Wernyani co-moderated a panel of Lab faculty and staff Jasmine Jefferson, Sushma Lohitsa, Mariaelena Lozano, Rebecca Reaves and Lauren Snelling. The panelists shared their experiences navigating their identity and finding joy. They shared the ways they celebrate their identity, including dancing, music and food. Many of the panelists discussed how affinity group spaces are essential to building community and empowerment.
To culminate the assembly, Chicago-based artist Déja K. Taylor performed slam poetry and a song that explored identity and justice through creative storytelling.
