Bemidji State University Hosts Women’s History Month Panel

The women of Bemidji State University are on a mission to bring many issues to the forefront, and today, that mission continued with a panel discussion in the A.C Clark Library called “We Will Not Be Quiet So You Can Remain Comfortable.”

“I’m glad that we have faculty members from different departments, as well as staff, to come together and share their knowledge and experiences as being a role model on campus,” says Dr. Brian Xiong, coordinator for the Center for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at BSU and Northwest Technical College.

“We went with a panel because we wanted to really highlight some of the awesome women on campus who potentially aren’t giving many panel discussions because of gender norms or whatever else,” says Colleen Deel, a librarian for the A.C Clark library.

Six panelists, all professors from different departments at BSU, led the discussion. They had met a few weeks ago before to discuss the topics that would eventually shape the event.

“We have some of these conversations in classes, of course, but to have them in an open forum outside is really interesting, and I think the diversity of views that were presented here are helpful in having students understand that we bring our own struggles to our jobs as professors,” says Dr. Rucha Ambikar, an assistant professor of sociology at BSU who also helped organize the month with Dr. Xiong.

The panelists answered nine questions that ranged from pop cultures topics like the “Me Too” movement to diversity, sustainability and privilege. There was also a discussion about language in regards to gender identity.

“It’s really important to remember in any conversation about male privilege or disadvantages that women face that trans women also face disadvantages because they are trans – whether they are trans women within the binary or trans women who were assigned male at birth or non-binary trans women who could be any type of non-binary gender identity,” says Kathryn Klement, an assistant professor of psychology who was also on the panel.

Audience participation was encouraged at the end of the discussion. One of the main goals of the panel was also to remind everyone that women’s issues are important for everyone on the spectrum to be aware of.

“Learning to talk about gender issues is going to enrich a lot of our students’ lives in the sense of what are skills we can take from college degrees to jobs,” says Ambikar.

Deel adds, “I do hope that this specific event becomes annual, but I hope that the library itself is able to welcome more events of this type.”

BSU will continue Women’s History Month with a presentation by public speaker Tish Norman on Monday. The event starts at 6 in the evening in the Beaux Arts Ballroom.