This spring, Old Westbury’s Resident Hall Association brings to us the Tunnel of Oppression, an interactive program that reveals the issues of oppression using all senses. This program originally developed in 1993 at Western Illinois University and has been replicated at numerous campuses worldwide. It is loosely based on the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, CA. The tunnel of oppression represents the realities of oppression in education, health, government, gender, etc. in an experiential manner. Viewers go through a tour with actors, images, and videos that aim to educate and allow viewers to experience the feelings of discrimination or oppression. At the end of the tour you are able to express how you feel and talk about your new-found knowledge. The goal of this is to educate people on how to live peacefully and achieve this.
As people mature and explore the world, one can be put in situations they’ve never been put in before. With new experiences, discrimination can arise. Discrimination and oppression can’t be fully understood until you go through it. The Resident Hall Association decided to conduct this program because they felt it was important for students to become more aware of how their actions or lack of action can impact many oppressive situations. Sadly, oppression occurs in our everyday lives, everywhere. Hopefully this program can be an eye-opener to the student body and we can all execute change in our lives. The program is scheduled for April 21stin the Amelie Wallace Gallery. RHA is still looking for volunteers who want to be actors/ actresses, guides, set designers, and perform other behind the scenes jobs. Anyone interested in being part of the program can email the RHA at oldwestburyrha@gmail.com.