April 2022
Register for DEI events on the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion’s Eventbrite page.
Darkness Into Life Exhibit
April 1-29 | Intercultural Diversity Center, 2100 Student Center
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
The Intercultural Diversity Center will host a monthlong exhibit in observance of Yom HaShoah featuring Birmingham Holocaust Education Center’s Darkness Into Life. This sensitive exhibit of photography and art offers a special glimpse into the private memories of 20 Alabama Holocaust survivors, revealing stories of childhoods past, lost family and friends, despair and sadness, cruelty beyond belief, bravery, the joys of liberation, and new lives in Alabama. Through bold and thought-provoking images accompanied by educational narratives, one gains a richer understanding of the history of the Holocaust and its impact on these individuals and their families. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Ally Training Program
Friday, April 1 | 9-11 a.m. | Virtual
(Educational Engagement/Cultural Exploration)
The UA Safe Zone Ally Training Program provides a visible network of allies for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) individuals. Safe Zone Allies distribute information regarding sexuality, gender identity, campus and community resources, and methods for reporting harassment and/or discrimination. The Safe Zone Ally Training Program is a two-hour training session that allows participants to: develop a working knowledge of appropriate and respectful LGBTQIA+ terminology; recognize the impact that a negative campus climate has on individuals who identify as LGBTQIA+; and identify areas of personal growth as a member of the UA community. Following the training program, participants are invited to sign-up to serve as UA Safe Zone Allies. Registration is required. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at 205-348–7297 or safezone@ua.edu.
Multi-Cultural Coffee Hour
Friday, April 1, 8, 15 | 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center, 2100 Student Center
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
The International Student and Scholar Services and the Intercultural Diversity Center will host weekly coffee hours for students, faculty and staff to enjoy free coffee, tea, snacks and conversation with others from around the world. For more information, contact International Student and Scholar Services’ Sonya Harwood-Johnson at sonya.harwood@ua.edu.
Rainbow Connection
Friday, April 1, 8, 15 | 2-3 p.m. | Safe Zone Resource Center
(Cultural Exploration/Social Enrichment)
UA students only
The Safe Zone Resource Center will host its weekly support and dialogue group for LGBTQIA+ identified students and their allies, Rainbow Connection. This group provides an opportunity to form supportive friendships with other group members, learn resilience skills and strategies for self-care, and set personal goals. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at safezone@ua.edu.
Social Justice Movie Series: ‘A Suitable Girl’ Virtual Screening
Friday, April 1 | 7 p.m. | Virtual
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
This week’s feature commemorates Arab American Heritage Month with a virtual showing of “A Suitable Girl.” Participants will hear the stories of three young Indian women struggling to maintain their identities, learn about the arranged marriage and matchmaking process, and examine the women’s complex relationship with marriage, family and society. Registration is required. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Celestia Morgan: Disparities Exhibition
Reception for the artist: Friday, April 1 | 5-8 p.m. | Paul R. Jones Museum
View exhibit through May 20 | 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday and noon-8 a.m. First Fridays | Paul R. Jones Museum
What does it mean in our society, one of the richest in the world, to not only systematically deny opportunities for progress and prosperity, but to also obstruct access to basic life needs such as food and housing? Celestia Morgan’s new work continues within her series of critically acclaimed photos and visual works titled “REDLINE.” In visually frank images, Morgan’s work displays and discusses historically deep-rooted inequalities related to housing and other basic life necessities. She works across several artistic mediums, incorporating sculpture, map making and community engagement as well as photography and video into her work.
Celestia Morgan was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. She earned her BFA in photography from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2012 and her MFA from The University of Alabama in 2017. Morgan has taught visual arts in the Birmingham City Schools and served as a photography instructor at UA. She is currently a postdoctoral research associate at UA.
Morgan’s recent exhibitions include REDLINE at the Birmingham Museum of Art; the National Public Housing Museum’s Undesign the Redline in Chicago; and New Southern Photography, curated by Richard McCabe at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans. She has also exhibited her work at the Minneapolis (Minn.) Institute of Art; Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas; and the Birmingham (Ala.) Civil Rights Institute. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Lenscratch, The Bitter Southerner, Art Papers, the Southern Foodways Alliance journal Gravy; and Burnaway. Morgan’s work is in the permanent collections of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Birmingham Museum of Art and in many private collections across the country. This exhibit has been made possible by grants from the Alabama State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information, call 205-345-3038.
Pop-Up Shop: Bringing the Multicultural Resource Guide to Life
Monday, April 4 | Noon-1 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
The Intercultural Diversity Center announces a new Pop-Up Shop Series. These programs are based on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Multicultural Resource Guide. This first installment will feature “The Culture of Hair” where attendees can learn about hair care and more. The program will feature live demonstrations from local salon owners and resource materials. For more information, please contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Diversity, Coffee and Conversations
Tuesday, April 5 | 8:30-10 a.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center, 2100 Student Center
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
This month’s program will highlight Holocaust Remembrance and Deaf History Month. Dr. Lisa Besnoy, executive director of Bloom Hillel, will discuss the national theme of “Memory, Dignity and Justice” guiding the United Nations’s Holocaust Remembrance, and Dr. Debrah Bryant, case manager for the Deaf at the Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind, will focus on the theme of “To hear life, listen with care!” in observance of Deaf History Month. For more information, contact the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at diversity@ua.edu.
Cinnamon Rolls, not Gender Roles: Neurodivergence
Tuesday, April 5 | 1 p.m. | Safe Zone Lounge, 2418 Student Center
(Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
UA students only
The Safe Zone Resource Center will host its weekly Cinnamon Rolls, not Gender Roles program for individuals of all identities to come together, eat pastries, and discuss topics concerning gender identity and performance in our current culture and climate. This group meets weekly on Tuesdays. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at safezone@ua.edu.
Education Abroad Pop-Up Advising
Tuesday, April 5, 12, 19, 26 | 1-3 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center, 2100 Student Center
Tuesday, April 5, 12, 19, 26 | 2-3 p.m. | Safe Zone Resource Center, 2419 Student Center
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement)
UA students only
The Capstone International Center will host weekly information sessions on studying abroad. The sessions will provide advising on the overall process and timeline for studying abroad, dispelling myths about Education Abroad, and information on program searching. For more information, contact the Capstone International Center at cic@ua.edu.
Asexuality Day
Wednesday, April 6 | All day, Celebration 3-4 p.m. | Safe Zone Student Lounge, 2418 Student Center
(Educational Engagement/Cultural Exploration)
For International Asexuality Day, Safe Zone Resource Center will do a social media visibility campaign and will have information on asexuality and asexual pride pins available in the lounge all day. The daylong drop-in event promotes asexuality awareness and allows students with asexual identities to see their identities celebrated.
Safe Zone will host a larger celebration at 3 p.m. to conclude the day’s activities. Light snacks will be available for all attendees and asexual flags will be available as giveaway items. Safe Zone will host a Q&A session about asexuality and encourage students to talk with each other about their experiences. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at 205-348–7297 or safezone@ua.edu.
National Day of Silence
Thursday, April 7 | Safe Zone Resource Center, 2419 Student Center
(Educational Engagement/Cultural Exploration)
UA students
The Day of Silence is a national student-led demonstration where LGBTQ students and allies all around the country—and the world—take a vow of silence to protest the harmful effects of harassment and discrimination of LGBTQ people in schools. The Safe Zone Resource Center will be providing participants with buttons and printed Day of Silence cards that outline why they are taking the vow of silence for the day. The annual event allows the community to shine a light on the discrimination that LGBTQ+ students face and will allow the UA community to show support for those students. Print materials will be available in the Safe Zone Student Lounge for the entire week preceding. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at 205-348-7297 or safezone@ua.edu.
MA Exhibitions: Upneet Kaur Mair and Shivam Pawar
April 7-13 | Monday and Wednesday 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Friday 9 a.m.-1 p.m. | Sella-Granata Art Gallery, Woods Hall
Artist reception: Thursday, April 7 | 4-6 p.m. | Sella-Granata Gallery
This month, the UA Department of Art and Art History presents the Master of Fine Arts thesis exhibitions of Shivam Pawar and Upneet Kaur Mair. A reception for the artists will be held Thursday, April 7, in the gallery from 4-6 p.m.
“Hypocrisy of the Parallel Universe – MFA Thesis Exhibition of Upneet Kaur Mair” — Inspired by Indian comic books and her personal experiences, Upneet Kaur Mair has created a “parallel universe” populated with characters such as a family of thieves causing mayhem for others, as well as themselves. She plays with humor, she explains, “to balance the negativity found in these paintings.” She writes that she uses “irony and satire to represent the hypocrisy of seemingly perfect people.” Mair holds a BFA in painting from Central India School of Fine Arts, Nagpur, India. She has exhibited her work in China, India, Serbia and the United States. Her large silkscreen and relief print on muslin (54 x 92 inches), titled Welcome to the Club, part of her MA exhibition (spring 2021), was selected for publication in the August 2021 issue of “The Hand: A Magazine for Reproduction-Based Art.”
“Embedded Memories – MFA Thesis Exhibition of Shivam Pawar” — Using drawing, painting, printmaking and installation, MFA candidate Shivam Pawar investigates the lives of the domestic workers who were part of his life growing up in his grandparents’ home in India. Pawar uses his artwork to depict his childhood memories of those workers while reassessing those memories and questioning his social privilege. As a graduate teaching assistant, Pawar teaches 2D Design (ART 130) and assists in Drawing I courses. He has a BFA in painting from Central India School of Fine Arts, Nagpur, India, and has exhibited his work in exhibitions in India, Norway, Serbia and the United States. His collagraph with chine-collé, titled Hardwork, was selected by juror Alison Saar for the International Print Center’s exhibition Umbra: New Prints for a Dark Age in 2019. Two works by Pawar were chosen for publication in the August 2021 issue of “The Hand: A Magazine for Reproduction-Based Art.” His work has been juried into numerous international and national exhibitions.
Read more about both exhibitions.
TEDTalk Tuesdays: ‘Violence Against Women – It’s a Men’s Issue’
Tuesday, April 12 | Noon-1 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center, 2100 Student Center
(Educational Engagement)
In observation of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, this TEDTalk will feature Jackson Katz, who points out that sexual assault acts are intrinsically men’s issues — and shows how these violent behaviors are tied to definitions of manhood. A clarion call for us all — women and men — to call out unacceptable behavior and be leaders of change. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Cinnamon Rolls, not Gender Roles: Careers and Work
Tuesday, April 12 | 1 p.m. | Safe Zone Lounge, 2418 Student Center
(Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
UA students only
The Safe Zone Resource Center will host its weekly Cinnamon Rolls, not Gender Roles program for individuals of all identities to come together, eat pastries, and discuss topics concerning gender identity and performance in our current culture and climate. This session will feature representatives from the UA Career Center. This group meets weekly on Tuesdays. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at safezone@ua.edu.
Remembering the Holocaust
Tuesday, April 12 | Presentation at 6 p.m. | Student Center Theater
Tuesday, April 12 | Reception and Book Signing 7:30-9 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
In observance of Yom HaShoah, Bama Hillel and the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion will host a special program to celebrate the lives of those lost during the Holocaust. Author Amy McDonald will discuss the details of life and experiences of Holocaust survivor Max Steinmetz, who lived in Birmingham, Alabama, and passed away in March 2021. McDonald is an AP U.S. History and Holocaust studies teacher at Shades Valley High School. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Social Work and a Master’s of Education in Secondary Social Science from the University of Montevallo. Following the 6 p.m. event, a reception and book signing will take place in the Intercultural Diversity Center from 7:30-9 pm. Copies of McDonald’s books: “Determined to Survive: A Story of Survival and One Teacher’s Passion to Bring That Story to Life” and “Word Smugglers: A Story of Resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto” will be available for purchase in the University Supply Store April 1-30. Registration is required to attend. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Food for Thought: Arab American Heritage Month
Wednesday, April 13 | Noon-1 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement)
The Food for Thought: Cultural Learning, Sharing and Teaching series will observe Arab American Heritage Month. This program will include a special Arabic 101 course featuring food, facts and history. Lunch will be provided, and participants will have the opportunity to receive giveaways that support educational efforts. Register for the event. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Pop Up Shop: Bringing the Multicultural Resource Guide to Life
Social Justice Movie Series: ‘Deaf Out Loud’ Virtual Screening
Friday, April 15 | 7 p.m. | Virtual
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
“Deaf Out Loud” follows three predominantly deaf families as they raise their children in a hearing world, how they navigate differing opinions about how deaf children should be raised swirling in the social consciousness and the way they work to forge their own paths forward and combat the daily social stigmas many deaf people face. Registration is required. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Study Break
Monday, April 18 | Noon-2 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center
(Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
The Intercultural Diversity Center will host a hybrid Study Break event for students to decompress and take a break from studying and final exam preparation. This event features a live DJ, healthy snacks, exclusive giveaways, and more. Registration is required. tinyurl.com/deiidcevents. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Lavender Graduation
Monday, April 18 | 5:30-8 p.m. | Student Center Ballroom
(Social Engagement/Cultural Exploration)
Lavender Graduation Ceremony is an annual event that highlights the struggles and accomplishments of LGBTQ+ graduates. The event consists of a graduation ceremony followed by a celebration. Catering will be provided for attendees at the banquet. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at 205-348-7297 or safezone@ua.edu.
TEDTalk Tuesdays: ‘The Attitudes that Sparked Arab Spring’
Tuesday, April 19 | Noon-1 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center
(Educational Engagement)
In observance of Arab American Heritage Month, this TEDTalk will feature researcher, author, adviser and pollster Dalia Mogahed. Participants will discover surprising data on Egyptian people’s attitudes and hopes before the Arab Spring, its effects, and a special focus on the role of women in sparking change. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Cinnamon Rolls, not Gender Roles: Fairy Tales and Folk Lore
Tuesday, April 19 | 1 p.m. | Safe Zone Lounge, 2418 Student Center
(Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
UA students only
The Safe Zone Resource Center will host its weekly Cinnamon Rolls, not Gender Roles program for individuals of all identities to come together, eat pastries, and discuss topics concerning gender identity and performance in our current culture and climate. This group meets weekly on Tuesdays. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at safezone@ua.edu.
Coffee & Mental Health
Wednesday, April 20 | 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center
(Educational Engagement/Social Enrichment)
The Intercultural Diversity Center and UA Counseling Center hosts this monthly event where students have an opportunity to speak with therapists in a one-on-one setting. The program provides an environment for participants to ask questions, get to know the University of Alabama therapists and learn about counseling as a student resource. In addition, the program will offer a space for guests to learn about the many mental wellbeing resources the counseling center has and ways they can connect with the counseling center. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
Dance Collection
Friday, April 22 | 5:30-7 p.m. | Dance Theatre | Tickets: $10
Experience the final dance concert of the UA season for one night only. Dance Collection is produced by the student-led organization, Dance Alabama! that provides opportunities for choreographic works to be presented to live audiences, while also promoting a positive and inclusive environment. Dance Collection aligns with this goal by allowing both dance majors and non-dance majors to choreograph work. Throughout the concert, audience members will witness the versatility and well-roundedness of the student choreographers and dancers. From ballet to jazz to contemporary pieces, audiences will experience an entertaining, yet compelling, artistic journey enhanced with depth, storytelling, and passion behind each work. Tickets can be purchased Monday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. in Rowand-Johnson Hall at the ticket office or by phone at 205-348-3400. Tickets also can be purchased online anytime.
Ally Training Program
Monday, April 25 | 3-5 p.m. | Virtual
(Educational Engagement/Cultural Exploration)
The UA Safe Zone Ally Training Program provides a visible network of allies for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) individuals. Safe Zone Allies distribute information regarding sexuality, gender identity, campus and community resources, and methods for reporting harassment and/or discrimination. The Safe Zone Ally Training Program is a two-hour training session that allows participants to: develop a working knowledge of appropriate and respectful LGBTQIA+ terminology; recognize the impact that a negative campus climate has on individuals who identify as LGBTQIA+; and identify areas of personal growth as a member of the UA community. Following the training program, participants are invited to sign up to serve as UA Safe Zone Allies. Registration is required. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at 205-348-7297 or safezone@ua.edu.
Lesbian Visibility Day
Tuesday, April 26 | Safe Zone Resource Center, 2419 Student Center
(Educational Engagement/Cultural Exploration)
The Safe Zone Resource Center will conduct an interactive social media engagement campaign of information and resources for Lesbian Visibility Day. Informational pamphlets and lesbian pride pins will be available in the Safe Zone Resource Center throughout the day. For more information, contact the Safe Zone Resource Center at 205-348-7297 or safezone@ua.edu.
Yom HaShoah 2022: Holocaust Remembrance Day Presentation
Wednesday, April 27 | Noon-2 p.m. | Intercultural Diversity Center
(Educational Engagement)
The Intercultural Diversity Center will provide a PowerPoint presentation about important facts of Yom HaShoah, better known as Holocaust Remembrance Day. Participants will learn about various facts surrounding the observance, the long-term effects of the Holocaust, and how the Jewish population worked together to rebuild for generations to come. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
AAPI Keynote Speaker: Dr. Michael Chwe
Wednesday, April 27 | 6-7 p.m. | Zoom
(Cultural Exploration/Educational Engagement)
Tuscaloosa native Dr. Michael Chwe is this year’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month speaker. Chwe, an author and professor of political science at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he teaches courses on game theory, will address this year’s theme of Advancing Leaders Through Collaboration and inform attendees on AAPI Month, the history of the Tuscaloosa Asian community, and how we can advance leaders through collaboration.
Chwe (pronounced like chess without the ss) studies how people coordinate their actions when each person wants to participate only if enough others do. He finds that, while coordination sometimes occurs through evolution or adaptation, more often it is the result of explicit communication. Chwe’s recent papers, including Communication and Coordination in Social Networks, Structure and Strategy in Collective Action and Strategic Reliability of Communication Networks, investigate how communication networks can resolve coordination problems. His most recent book, “Jane Austen: Game Theorist” finds common ground between the study of people’s choices and writing of the early 19th-century English novelist. Other areas of interest include jury decision making and television advertising. Chwe has served on the faculty of the University of Chicago and New York University. Dr. Chwe’s keynote will address this year’s theme of Advancing Leaders Through Collaboration and inform attendees on AAPI month (which is held in May), the history of the Tuscaloosa Asian community, and how we can advance leaders through collaboration. Registration is required. For more information, contact the Intercultural Diversity Center at ua_idc@ua.edu.
EveryWoman Book Club
Thursday, April 28 | Noon-1 p.m. | Zoom
The current book is “Women Talking” by Miriam Toews. The book, which is based on real events, tells the story of how eight women who have been sexually assaulted meet together in a hayloft and how they plan to protect themselves and their children by leaving the colony in which they live. Join the discussion.
The EveryWoman Book Club, which has existed more than 15 years, emphasizes works written by and about women. During the fall and spring semesters, the Women and Gender Resource Center hosts the club and participants read texts from a range of genre and styles that focus on different heritage/history months. The readings continue during the summer but without a particular emphasis on heritage or history months. The club is open to faculty, staff, graduate students and community members. Join the club by contacting Elizabeth Lester at elester1@ua.edu.