When people hear the word "racism," they often cringe and change the subject.
Vasti Torres wants to change that.
Torres, an associate professor at Indiana University Bloomington, attracted about 100 people Wednesday to the University Auditorium on Wednesday for her lecture on recognizing racism as part of the 2008 Riker Lecture Series.
Torres talked about the importance of reflecting on cultural roles on a daily basis.
She said one of the key ways for people to deal with racism is to admit that they don't know everything.
Torres defined two types of people in her lecture - the oppressed and the privileged.
It's important for students who are privileged to recognize their role in society, she said.
Not all students should be treated the same, Torres said.
"Why should you treat a third-generation Gator student the same as someone who is the first person in their family going to college?" she said. "They're different, they have access to different information and have different life perspectives."
She also spoke about how society uses code words to express how other people are different.
For example, the word "articulate" may be offensive to some black people because it implies they are otherwise less intelligent.
However, Jerry Bruno, a UF sophomore who is black, said he thinks of it as a compliment.
As a first-generation college student, Bruno said he felt people had lower expectations of him during his freshman year, but he decided not to buy into the idea as he spent more time at UF.
He said he now always tries to ask questions to get to know people rather than judge them immediately.
"This speech definitely made me think about how I interact with people and how I perceive myself," he said.
"Now I know that I have to start testing the waters with things that I am still uncomfortable about."
