Office for Institutional Diversity

November 2, 2021

Dear Reed Community,

November is National Native American Heritage Month. We would like to reaffirm the statement we sent out in our October newsletter highlighting the Office for Institutional Diversity's (OID) commitment to advancing Indigenous issues at Reed, and seeking collaboration with Indigenous and Native community members. For students who are aiming for involvement and community around their Indigenous identity, the Multicultural Resource Center invites you to contact them. For staff and faculty who want to connect, engage, and collaborate on any initiatives, events, or programming that might help uplift the Indigenous and Native community on campus, please contact associate dean Cameo Lyn West.

We would also like to highlight two other observance days this month. November 11th is Veterans Day, a national holiday that was established in 1919 as Armistice Day to commemorate the end of the Great War, but has been celebrated as Veterans Day since the 1950s. On November 11th, we invite our community to reflect on the theme of sacrifice, and to celebrate those veterans who are members of our community here at Reed. Many Veterans Day celebrations are still canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we encourage interested community members to contact the Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs to learn more about any commemorative and celebratory opportunities this month. November 20th is the 22nd annual Transgender Day of Remembrance, which was established as a vigil by trans activist Gwendolyn Ann Smith to honor the memory of Rita Hester, a trans woman who was murdered in 1998. This day is not only for remembrance and reflection, but to raise awareness about the continued violence committed against transgender people. On November 20th, we encourage our community to take some time to be in silence and honor the many victims of transphobic violence. For more information about vigils being held to commemorate the Transgender Day of Remembrance in Portland, please contact the Portland Q Center. 

With regard to programming, OID's "Supporting Students" workshop series for staff and faculty this month will highlight supporting Native and Indigenous-identified students, with guest facilitator Tim Topper of UCLA's American Indian Studies Interdepartmental Program. More information is forthcoming; please be on the lookout for an email with a sign-up form. 

As always, the Multicultural Resource Center (MRC) is holding several events this month. We would like to highlight two that might be of interest to Black and students of color:

1. SOCU (Students of Color Union) Dinner on Friday November 12th from 6:30 - 8:00 pm in Kaul. OID, The MRC, and International Student Services invite students of color to share a special meal, catered by Luc Lac. Food will be served from 6:30 pm until supplies run out. Please note this meal is intended as a community gathering of students who identify as people of color. We kindly ask that community members who do not identify in this way honor the limited resources being provided.

2. Free haircuts (for Black identifying students) on Monday, November 29th from 11:00 am - 5:00 pm in the Student Center. Reservations will be required (form forthcoming).

If there is a day of recognition that you would like highlighted, please let us know by replying to this email. We look forward to growing with you in cultural education initiatives and celebrations.

Thank you,
The Office for Institutional Diversity