Social justice organizers encouraged the community to get involved and explored complex issues in a community discussion panel inspired by the local musical “The Scottsboro Boys” Saturday evening at Phoenix Theatre.
The panel discussed a range of social issues including racism, sexism and problems people face after leaving incarceration. The panelist advocated the community to spark discussion, think openly and be active in social change.
“I grew up in circumstances that made me aware of my whiteness early on and of the hardships of my friends of color and women in my life,” said Joseph Benesh, one of the panelists and a director of the Phoenix Center for the Arts. “And I try to remember that as often as I can because there’s a responsibility when you have privilege.”
The other panelists consisted of professionals in social justice organizations such as Grace Gamez, a program coordinator at American Friends Service Committee, Ellie Hutchison, a programs manager at Arizona Humanities, Natividad Mendoza, the co-founder and director of From Gangs to Jobs and Calvin Terrell, the founder and lead facilitator of Social Centric. The panel was moderated by Kermit Brown, an affiliate faculty of the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy (CSRD) at Arizona State University and a communications professor at the university.
The discussion was meant to be a space for discourse and discussion about the themes of the premiere musical currently being shown at Phoenix Theatre, “The Scottsboro Boys.” The musical is based on a true story of nine African-American teenagers who were falsely accused of raping two white women in a landmark trial in 1931 that dealt with racism and divided the nation.
One of the main themes repeated by the panelists was how powerful communication can be. The panelists recommended having conversations about complex issues that can be seen in the musical and the real world.
“Have these conversations. Challenge people,” Hutchison said. “Be honest in your approach. Be honest in not knowing. And just like talk to somebody you wouldn’t talk to. Take the public bus. For real, take public transportation. Humanities happen there every day.”
Brown was also an advocate of communicating change with others and suggested it as a way to get involved.
“I tell my students that they have one of the most powerful tools that a human can possess and that’s this,” Brown said. “And I point to my mouth and I say this is your tool and this is the ultimate maker of change.”
The crowd was often inspired, applauding the panelists and other speakers multiple times throughout the discussion that featured progressive ideas but also grim stories. The panelists also acknowledged they don’t have all the answers. Many social injustices are complex and a simple solution won’t fix them, they said.
“If there was a formula on how to fix this, we wouldn’t be having this panel right now,” Terrell said. “So nobody knows how to do this. So everybody has to learn.”
Still, the panelists were hopeful about bringing change, often joking about how their goal is to not be needed anymore.
“Our job is to put ourselves out of a job,” Terrell said.
For people looking to get involved, the panelist suggested finding a strong area of interest and to not worry about qualifications.
“Find out what your passion is. Find out what you’re crazy about. Find out what moves you,” Mendoza said. “I don’t have education. I don’t have a lot of the tools that people think you got to have.”
Contact the reporter at ijgonza1@asu.edu.
