Sept. 18 presentation of 'Defamation' will address race, gender and class, with audience as jury

Kimm Beavers, managing producer of "Defamation," portrays the play’s defense attorney Ms. Allen, who is representing a Jewish North Shore real estate developer being sued for defamation. (Photo by James Yates) Download image

It's the audience -- students, staff and faculty -- who will grapple with complex issues such as race, religion, gender, class and the law. It's the viewers who also will determine the trial's outcome, after holding their own preconceived notions under a more objective lens.

"Defamation," a play written by Todd Logan, will take place at 7 p.m. Sept. 18 in the Hiler Theater of the new Wilmeth Active Learning Center. Admission is free; doors will open at 6:30 p.m. and with seating on a first-come, first-served basis.

The event is co-sponsored by Purdue’s Division of Diversity and Inclusion; the Office of the Dean of Students; the College of Science Diversity Office; Purdue’s cultural and resource centers; Span Plan Nontraditional Student Services; and Student Success Programs. The list of sponsors is extensive because, as one organizer put it, helping students, staff and faculty communicate across their differences is a shared responsibility.

“I believe we made our students a promise,” says Annette Brown, diversity outreach project manager in the Division of Diversity and Inclusion. “When students signed the dotted line to come to Purdue, we told them we would make them global leaders and that they would be able to go out in a diverse world and work with people who are different from them. It’s my hope that those who see the play will leave just a little more open-minded than when they came into the event, and hopefully build some capacity to have dialogue about these issues with people outside of their inner circle.”

Brown says the play features themes that may be difficult for some to discuss but that are nonetheless urgent to address in the context of today’s political and social climates.

“What happened in Charlottesville a few weeks ago opened wounds from the shooting at Emmanuel AME Church in South Carolina, from Ferguson, from Baltimore,” she says. “Those events have come back to the surface, and some of the people who were impacted, whether directly or indirectly, are here on our campus. We can’t just pretend that those things don’t impact us, because they do. And we can talk about how we want Purdue to be a welcome and inviting community where all people feel a part, but until we do the work to make it that type of environment, it’s a moot point.”

Part of that work, says Peggy Favorite, is for individuals to challenge their personal biases and think deeply about them all the time. It’s the main reason why Favorite, director of Span Plan, chose to attend the play at a conference. It’s also why she wanted to help bring the play to Purdue.

“I think diversity and inclusion is everyone’s job, and the more opportunities we have on our campus to explore those themes and engage in active conversation about them, the better,” Favorite says. “The play hits you on a very emotional level. It’s intense, it’s powerful, and it sparks conversations.”

Zenephia Evans, director of Purdue’s Science Diversity Office, is most looking forward to the postshow discussion, which she says may help some participants learn how to better manage their emotional intelligence.

“Interactions between people are often masked when they don’t understand what they’re bringing to the table,” Evans says. “Hidden biases that are nourished and brick walls built based on negative interactions or seen on various media outlets need to surface and crumble. In homogeneous environments, it is easy to share similar biased negative thoughts that often do not transfer to heterogeneous spaces without conflict arising. Attending 'Defamation' is a good opportunity for individuals to come to grips with the ways in which their emotions might be leading their responses.”

Jazmine Clifton, who saw the play earlier this year, says one of her biggest takeaways was the importance of compassion.

“The people and events portrayed in the play could exist in our day-to-day lives,” says Clifton, a student success coach for Purdue Promise. “For me, it underscored the importance of asking questions, being patient, listening to people’s stories, understanding their backgrounds and appreciating where they’ve come from.”

Writer: Andrea Mattingly, communications director for Student Success Programs, 765-496-3754, andrea@purdue.edu