Stan State had the privilege of hosting Tendayi Achiume as the keynote speaker for a conversation on racism and intolerance.
Tendayi Achiume is a professor at the UCLA School of Law and was elected as the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur in 2017. Specifically, her role revolves around being an expert on international human rights law, focusing on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Speaking at the Snider Recital Hall, Achiume explained her role in the United Nations. She said, “I report to the Human Rights Council and I also report to the General Assembly.” 
She went on to address racial discrimination and xenophobia around the globe, with those in attendance listening keenly. Susan Stevenson, an Art professor at Stan State, said the campus can learn a lot from Tendayi Achiume’s speech.
“It’s alarming…Raising awareness is good for everybody,” said Stevenson in regards to Achiume discussing white supremacy and xenophobia. 
Similarly, Matt Jenning (junior, History), said that while he attended the event for extra credit, he felt the topics at hand “needed to be discussed.” 
The event itself gave those in attendance a chance to understand how the United Nations are addressing the refugee crisis and racial discrimination around the world. To cap off the informative and interactive speech, Achiume said she does have hope moving forward, but “we don’t take young people seriously enough as knowledge.” 
It was an event that plenty of information can be taken and applied to local communities in order to create change and promote inclusivity.