Discussion of minority issues at Simpson College may appear to be futile and far between. However, the college is making some valuable changes in the way that we address Black History Month and diversity issues as a whole.

“An Ounce of Doing”, the Martin Luther King Day project, is the first great step that the college has made to fuse diversity and community in an applicable and meaningful way. “An Ounce of Doing” is the necessary leap from the world of theory concerning diversity and social justice to the world of action.

Academia too often displaces the passion that resides in young people and places it within the study of the past and predictions for the future. Simpson College is making a worthwhile commitment to its values as a liberal arts college.

As students, we need to appreciate the efforts that the Minority and Multicultural Affairs Committee has made to bridge the gap between academic discourse and a course of action.

Black History Month has been an observance at Simpson College in the past and it seems as if this year it has become a celebration and an invitation to contribute to the greater good of society.

With forum speakers that will discuss such pertinent issues as race relations in the Midwest and the identity of African Americans within our dominant cultural texts, Simpson College has chosen to emphasize that Black History is American history and that in many ways Simpson College’s history is indicative of the story of all race relations in the Midwest.