The Department of Multicultural Student Affairs, University Recreation and the Office for Institutional Equality and Diversity sponsored the Tunnel of Oppression event on March 26 and 27.

The event was created to help spread awareness about different forms of oppression that occur every day on our campus and throughout our lives. 

In the tunnel, visitors experience dramatizations of different forms of oppression and at the end discussed how the dramatizations made them feel. Groups also discuss how to end and move past this kind of oppression. 

The concept is the tunnel represents darkness, ignorance and oppression but there is always a light at the end of the tunnel where we find empowerment and truth. Jasmine Omorogbe, assistant director of the Department of Multicultural Student Affairs Office said the event is very important in terms of raising awareness about privilege, oppression and power.

“Most people aren’t mindful of the oppression they inflict on others and the tunnel opens their eyes to it,” Omorogbe said. 

In previous years, it highlighted many controversial issues including sexual violence, race and issues faced by the LGBT community. Along with these issues, religion, welfare and socioeconomic status were portrayed. 

Tyler Allen, a senior in molecular biology and a tour guide for the event, said the racism portion had the greatest impact on him.

 “Hearing the racial slurs being yelled out and seeing the actor’s powerful reaction to them really affected me,” Allen said.

Allen said he would like to see the topic of immigration added to the tunnel event. 

“It’s a very big issue that affects many students on our campus and I think it is something that everyone should be aware of,” Allen said.  

PJ Adams, a staff psychologist for the Counseling Center and part of the committee who helped create the Tunnel of Oppression this year, said “the purpose of this event is to highlight privilege and oppression, but above all people just want to be understood and an event like this helps us understand each other better.”

Omorogbe said more than 300 people attended.