CONTRIBUTED BY CHUCK RIPLEY

Dear Winonan Staff and Faculty Advisor,

As both a WSU Professor and as Chair of the Winona Human Rights Commission, the City and County-wide Commission charged with fighting discrimination and fostering positive community relations, I want to register how deeply disturbed the Commission and I were by the September 3 cover of the Winonan.  While the Winonan is a student newspaper whose primary audience is the student body of WSU, WSU is a vital part of the wider Winona community and its actions have a profound impact on everyone in it.  Your cover spoke not only to students, but to community members who were acutely aware of its racist overtones and its message of exclusion and demonization, proudly emblazoned with the WSU logo.  The Winona Human Rights Commission takes these issues very seriously, and we urge you to be aware of how your practices as journalists impact both WSU and the wider community in which you live.

As a professor and Human Rights Commissioner, I urge your staff and readers to attend our follow up discussion from the presentation and student panel on October 7 entitled “What’s Race got to do with This?:  Media Management of Minority Images.”  The title of this presentation drew from the oblique statement in your September 10 issue that you “apologize for the misinterpretation of the photo we printed.”  The community at large recognized that there was no ambiguity about the racist overtones of the image.  These issues can be complex and difficult to talk about, but I hope everyone has the courage to continue learning and having this vital conversation.

Sincerely,

Chuck Ripley