The Inter-Residence Hall Association will be hosting its first Tunnel of Oppression at Broward Hall on Thursday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
The event, which starts in Broward’s lobby, will address topics such as immigration, religion, slavery, genocide, sexual orientation and self-image.
These themes will be presented in visual and sensory detail as guides lead groups of about eight students through the rooms.
At the end of the tour, there is a room where a counselor will be available to talk to students about what they have seen.
“It is a diversity event to break down barriers between people who experience oppression every day and those who never experience it,” said Jimmy McClellan, the project’s director.
The tunnel will be in Broward’s basement, featuring seven rooms, each with a different theme illustrated by graphic images and actors.
Actors will interact with each other and with group members in an attempt to evoke a mindset that shows how it’d be if they were a different person.
Altogether, the tunnel should take about 45 minutes to complete.
Sakina Sackaloo, the IRHA vice president, learned of the program at a conference and believes it could be a real eye-opener.
“Instead of just reading about it, it puts you in the place of the oppressor or the oppressed,” she said.
