Students oppress to fight oppression

Students in Grinnell Hall have been shouting derogatory terms, forcing other students to segregate and preaching about the demons of homosexuality all in the name of fighting oppression.

The Tunnel of Oppression, an interactive experience that allows visitors to feel oppression firsthand, began Monday in the basement of Grinnell Hall.

Alfred Jackson, assistant director of education and outreach with University Housing and organizer of the event, said the project attempts to demonstrate the many ways people are oppressed in the world.

“(It’s) an interactive diversity education piece whereby tour participants get to receive what others think has happened as far as discrimination, stereotyping and oppression,” Jackson said.

Each of the tunnel’s 12 rooms focuses on a different theme relating to oppression, and demonstrations are meant to be as harsh as oppression in the real world.

“The participants can be accosted verbally, visually, through the sense of smell, hearing and sometimes through touch,” Jackson said.  “We tend to accost all of the senses to give you a taste of what someone is actually living through.”

Tour guides lead visitors through the tunnel in groups of 15 at a time.

The Actors

Chanice Patrick would like to clarify she is not a stripper or a mother.

Patrick, a junior from Chicago studying accounting, portrays a single mother who must strip to support her children and put herself through school.

Patrick’s room in the tunnel was plastered with phrases such as “This isn’t my career,” on the surrounding walls. Textbooks and a backpack were strewn across one corner of the room and a picture of Patrick with her two “sons” hung on the wall.

Patrick confronted the audience loudly with the plights of her character’s life.

”I’m going to school. I’m studying to be an accountant,” her character insisted as she gestured toward the textbooks. “I have to find a way to put food on the table for my two boys.”

Despite the fact that she is not a stripper, though, Patrick said her portrayal holds true to her life.

“Everything in my room is real,” Patrick said. “Those are really my books and one is $165, so somebody might need to strip to pay for it.”

Patrick said staying in character takes an emotional toll on her.

“Last night, the first, second and last scene, I actually cried,” she said.

In a nearby chamber of the tunnel, Chanell Hale and Bruce Gardner forced visitors to segregate according to race and loudly accosted them for their appearance.

Hale, a junior from Chicago studying psychology, and Gardner, a junior from Chicago studying sports administration, criticized the visitors for all aspects of their appearance and attitude, and asked them if they felt inferior because of their race.

Hale said their attack is meant to enlighten people about oppression.

“It’s like what’s happening in life and we’ve got to tell the story about it,” Hale said.

Gardner said she agreed that working in the tunnel could be emotionally difficult.

He said there was one girl who seemed particularly frightened by his portion of the tunnel.

“I was feeling bad about what I was doing,” Gardner said. “But it was like ‘OK, maybe she needed this before she could understand what’s going on.’”

Hale said the reactions to their room of the tunnel vary from visitor to visitor.
“Some of them shed tears, some of them look disappointed, some of them look in complete awe.  It just depends on who walks in the room,” she said.

The Visitors

Kenisha Walker was scared to even enter the tunnel.

Walker, a sophomore from Chicago studying business, said she avoided the event altogether last year, but decided to attend this year after friends recommended the experience.

“Last year, I decided not to go because of what I was hearing,” Walker said. “But this year I felt that maybe I should go and see what it’s all about.”

Meanwhile, Jauzlynn Brown, a freshman from Rockford studying business, sat in a plush chair in anticipation of her first tunnel experience.

She said her expectations had been heightened by what friends had told her about the tunnel.

“I’m a little nervous to see what the outcome is going to be,” Brown said.  “Somebody who’s supposed to have a room in there told me by the time I leave I might be angry.”

Brown’s friend, Monique Bailey, sat next to her while they waited for their tour. Bailey said she too expected somewhat of an unpleasant experience in the tunnel.

“I probably don’t want to hear any negative things about myself,” said Bailey, a freshman from Rockford studying psychology.

“I came last year and I thought it was interesting, so I decided to come back again,” said Alexis Lindsey, a sophomore from Tolono studying history who claims to be a Tunnel of Oppression veteran.

Lindsey said she was upset by the profanities screamed at her last year, but still decided to return again this year.

“Some of the things they told me I’ve had people tell me in real life,” she said.

The Result

At the end of the tunnel, groups of visitors are led into a room with counselors where they can talk about their journey through the tunnel. 

The walls of the counseling room are covered in bright red paper where students can write their feelings in marker — a sharp contrast from the black plastic curtains and harsh environment of the rest of the tunnel.

 “One of the most important parts of it is the counseling component because we don’t want people to leave with all this built up frustration, anxiety or fear,” Jackson said.

Tyyan Peters, a junior from Chicago studying communication disorder science, said when she exited the tunnel, she felt like she had gained something from the experience.

 “It gave me a new perspective and understanding of what’s out there in the world,” she said.

Kalli Marion, a sophomore from Bolingbrook studying public relations, said the experience was more intense than she had expected.

 “I think you’re faced with everything they talk about every day, except this is just more drastic,” she said.

The Tunnel of Oppression will be open tonight from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Jackson said the Tunnel of Oppression would most likely take place again next year and hoped the tunnel would be able to expand to accommodate the growing student interest.