Department of Human Resources

Film and panel discussion on the video series of
"Race: The Power of an Illusion", Episode 1: The Difference Between Us

Tuesday, February 7
4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Solon Campus Center 120

co--sponsored by:
UMD Commission on Diversity
National Center for Outreach
WDSE Channel 8 TV

This episode shows that despite what we’ve always believed, the world’s peoples simply don’t come bundled into distinct biological groups. The program follows a dozen students, including Black athletes and Asian string players, who sequence and compare their own DNA to see who is more genetically similar. The results surprise the students and the viewer.

After the film, there will be a discussion led by Colleen Belk, Instructor in the UMD Department of Biology; and Jennifer Jones, Assistant Professor in the UMD Department of Sociology/Anthropology. Deborah Petersen-Perlman, Director of the UMD Office of Equal Opportunity, will moderate.

Academic/P&A Goals and Timetables

Monday, February 13
10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Garden Room

This workshop will cover the Academic, Professional and Administrative Goal Reports, including how to access the reports, what are in the reports, and how to use the reports.

Deborah Petersen-Perlman is the Director of the UMD Office of Equal Opportunity and an Associate Professor in the UMD Department of Communication.

Film and panel discussion on the video series of
"Race: The Power of an Illusion" Episode 2: The Story We Tell

Wednesday, March 22
4:00 to 5:30 p.m.
Solon Campus Center 120

co--sponsored by:
UMD Commission on Diversity
National Center for Outreach
WDSE Channel 8 TV

Episode 2 traces the origins of the racial idea to the European conquest of the New World and to the American slave system -- the first ever where all the slaves shared similar physical traits and a common
ancestry.

Presenters:

Jason Ford, Assistant Professor in the UMD Department of Philosophy

Eleanor Hannah, Assistant Professor in the UMD Department of History

Moderator:
Thomas Powers, Assistant Professor in the UMD Department of Political Science

Film and panel discussion on the video series of
"Race: The Power of an Illusion" Episode 3: The House We Live In

Wednesday, April 5
4:00 to 5:30 p.m.
Solon Campus Center 120

co--sponsored by:
UMD Commission on Diversity
National Center for Outreach
WDSE Channel 8 TV

If race doesn't exist biologically, what is it? And why should it matter? This episode focuses on the ways our institutions and policies
advantage some groups at the expense of others. Its subject is the "unmarked" race: white people. We see how benefits quietly and often
invisibly accrue to white people not necessarily because of merit or
hard work, but because of the racialized nature of our laws, courts, customs, and perhaps most pertinently, housing.

Presenters:

Sheryl Grana, Associate Professor in the UMD Department of Sociology/ Anthropology

Joan Varney, Assistant Professor in the UMD Department of Education

Moderator:
Thomas Powers, Assistant Professor in the UMD Department of Political Science