Creating Democratic Spaces for Addressing Racism on College Campuses: The Example of Dialogue to Change at Oklahoma State University

Authors

Martha McCoy, Everyday DemocracyFollow

Abstract

Polarizing rhetoric, racist violence, and racial inequality continue to cast a dark shadow over democracy and threaten to further divide our communities. How our country moves forward in this time is under consideration by practitioners, scholars, and everyday people alike. This article begins by reviewing the Dialogue to Change approach Everyday Democracy has developed to expand opportunities for the people of our country to grapple with racism together, across racial backgrounds, and then work with each other and public officials to create positive, equitable change at local, state, and national levels. The second part of the article looks at the research and analysis of the dialogue to change efforts at The Center for Public Life at Oklahoma State University and finds it noteworthy for the ways in which they build on and advance lessons about creating and sustaining democratic discourse on racism. While campuses-as-communities are not democracies in and of themselves, they have an essential role to play in our larger democracy.

Recommended Citation

McCoy, Martha (2021) "Creating Democratic Spaces for Addressing Racism on College Campuses: The Example of Dialogue to Change at Oklahoma State University," eJournal of Public Affairs: Vol. 10: No. 1, Article 3.
Available at: https://bearworks.missouristate.edu/ejopa/vol10/iss1/3