Department of Multicultural Life
The mission of the Department of Multicultural Life (DML) is to provide transformative leadership in creating a culture of diversity and justice that enables all Macalester students to respond to the complexities of the national and larger international community. With other College faculty and staff, the DML staff shares responsibility to maintain a living/learning environment for students that respects multiple perspectives and works towards equity and social justice for everyone.
DML & Scots on Screen
Hana Dinku, Director of Diversity Education, Leadership and Inclusion (she/her) Click on the thumbnail to learn more about Hana and what she loves about the work she does at Mac.
New Pilot Course: Ethnic Studies and Campus Activism
In the United States, the field of ethnic studies evolved out of student activism. Most disciplines began in the Academy and have stayed in the Academy. Ethnic Studies is different. The Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s and early 1970s, contributed to growing self-awareness and radicalization of people of color such as African-Americans, Asian Americans, Latino Americans, and Indigenous People. Ethnic studies departments were established on college campuses across the country and have grown to encompass African American Studies, Asian American Studies, Chicano Studies, and Native American Studies. What is the history of Ethnic Studies at Macalester College? Also how does this knowledge transpire in communiversities in the Twin Cities, such as Nu Skool? This course will teach students how student and community activism have led to the creation of ethnic studies departments on college campuses; and will provide students an opportunity to explore the tools and strategies utilized in these movements.
Created by the American Studies Department and co-taught by Hana Dinku and Professor Duchess Harris.
Sit in on a session of this course featuring guest speaker: Trustee Emerita Shelley Carthen Watson ’82 on Wednesday, June 23 at 3:15 CDT.
Related Programs: Cultural Organizations During the Pandemic
BIPOC Student Leadership
Duchess Harris and Hana Dinku co-designed the Ethnic Studies & Campus Activism Mod 5 course to introduce student leaders to Ethnic Studies as a discipline and to help students understand the role of student activism in transforming higher education institutions. We held 2 info sessions to recruit BIPOC student leaders to the course and held another event (Solidarity Tuesday) where current student leaders shared about their experiences.
Solidarity Tuesdays
Join us this Tuesday, April 6, from 4:30-6:30 p.m. CDT, for our Mod 4 Solidarity Tuesday gathering! This space allows for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) to engage in intentional dialogue on various topics impacting our local and global community, with the goal of defining praxis in order to work towards our collective liberation.
For this Solidarity Tuesday, a panel of BIPOC student leaders across the class years will engage in dialogue about BIPOC organizing at Macalester, campus activism in general, and our dreams and desires as a collective. We would love to have BIPOC students join us in this conversation so we can learn together about building movements that center our collective well-being, joy, and desires! Hope to see you there.