By Michael Foster-Sanders/campus editor
TCC’s Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion and NE’s student development services will host The Defamation Experience at 11 a.m. Feb. 14 in Center Corner (NSTU 1615A).
The interactive experience is based on the 2010 play Defamation by Todd Logan and is designed to help participants understand bias and how much it affects their work and learning environments.
Playwright Todd Logan wrote on the Defamation website that he wanted to write a play that encourages tolerance and understanding by having compelling civil discourse.
“Whether we like it or not, we still have major divides in this country,” he wrote. “Most of us still go to bed at night in cities, communities and neighborhoods that are segregated by race, religion, ethnicity and class.”
The play is set up like an old-fashioned courtroom drama and addresses issues of race, class, religion, gender and the law. The production centers on an African-American woman accused of theft by a Jewish real-estate developer. The play runs 90 minutes, followed by a panel conversation moderated by the cast.
NE student development services director Victor Ballesteros hopes the experience will make attendees think about bias and discover new solutions to old problems.
“The play has been to over 100 college campuses, and they [cast members] know how to engage people in different new ways to have discussions and dialogues more efficiently without turning into arguments and having an exchange of ideas,” he said.
Institutional diversity and inclusion director Andrew Duffield hopes each person who attends the play leaves with a changed perspective.
“The Defamation Experience will create a diversity dialogue unique to Tarrant County College and should open doors to continued learning opportunities for faculty, students and staff,” he said.
Admission is free.
