|
|
||
 |
||
 |
||
|
||
 |
|
|
Mission of the Common Experience at Texas State
Can it be cured by love? Let us say it may more readily be prevented by education." -Elie Wiesel, Concentration Camp Survivor & Nobel Peace Laureate As the words of Elie Wiesel so poignantly suggest, stemming the tide of hatred may be one of the most daunting challenges facing us today. "Explorations on Night and the Challenge of Hatred-A Common Experience" is a year-long initiative of Texas State University-San Marcos designed to cultivate a "common intellectual conversation" across the campus, to enhance student participation in the intellectual life of the campus, and to foster a sense of community across our entire campus and extended community. By examining the deep roots of hatred, we may expose the manner in which hate-based actions can be couched in the name of good-while inflicting harm. Through honest dialogue, we may become more aware of the role that hatred plays in our lives, our community, our world and our collective history.
Details regarding all components of the Common Experience are accessible by way of this website, so please explore for additional information, and, most of all: Welcome to the Common Experience. |
|
|
|
"What I have learned from encounters of the subject of hatred is
that hate is like cancer. It grows. If unchecked, it will move from
cell to cell, from limb to limb, from person to person, from community
to community; at the end, hate destroys not only its target but
also its carrier...
But
an awareness of hatred is more than just a matter of exposure and
acknowledgement. To be of value, a dialogue with potential for change
must be a life transforming experience. It needs to promote an understanding
of what each individual can do to counter the tide of hate, as much
as it exposes each individual to the reality of his or her own potentially
hateful attitudes. The Common Experience has been designed with
this transformative element in mind.