Souls apart

By Amber Veverka
Special to the Observer

Posted: Friday, Feb. 27, 2009

One by one, they appear on camera, telling what it's liked to be taunted for being Muslim, looked down on for being African American, laughed at for being gay.

These teenagers are the subjects of a new, locally produced documentary, “Souls of our Students,” and each tells a story of being on the outside, looking in.

“Souls of our Students” premieres publicly March 8 at ImaginOn, and may soon be used in congregations throughout the area to help teach a message of respect and kindness to others.

The video, shot more than a year ago, was the creation of a team that included Rabbi Judy Schindler of Temple Beth El and other clergy, the Charlotte Coalition for Social Justice and Mecklenburg Ministries.

The idea for the documentary was launched when Mecklenburg Ministries gathered a group of white clergy to listen to a group of black clergy tell what it's like being in the minority in Charlotte.

Schindler remembers being riveted by the stories she heard that day – and when the participants were given seed money to create a project afterward based on what they had learned, she knew it was stories she wanted to capture. She and several other clergy members pooled their seed money – and later sought grants from Foundation for the Carolinas – to create “Souls of our Students.”

“My goal would be to spark reflective conversations on how we can be a more inclusive community that embraces diversity,” Schindler said. “I wanted to capture the stories of our students in high school and the ways in which their differences impact their lives.”

Jessica Rosenfeld participated in the video as a Jewish student in what she referred to as Charlotte's “Christian-until-proven-otherwise” culture.

Rosenfeld said that while she hasn't experienced blatant prejudice, she wanted people to know how it feels to be part of a minority. “There are always those moments,” she said, “when you're sitting there and someone wants to pray before a meal and (it's) the Lord's Prayer and you're thinking, ‘OK, what do I do now?'”

Sara Maye, who was born in Somalia and whose family came to the States during that nation's civil war, told about a boy in school yanking off her Muslim head scarf. “People … said, ‘You must be a terrorist,'” she said.

Students ‘feel they are alone'

Sometimes teachers hear teens harassing each other and say nothing, because they think it's normal – “what kids do these days,” said Ingrid Collazos, who is from Colombia and who talks on the video about ethnic and racial diversity.

Collazos, who has lived in Charlotte seven years and is now a senior at Myers Park High School, said nearly every day someone flings a comment at her about her status as an immigrant: “You should go back to your own country” or “Stop taking our jobs.”

“The reason I agreed to do the video,” she said, “is I know there are more students like me who feel they are alone and that everything that is happening to them is happening to them alone.”

A facilitator's guide has been written to go along with the video, and congregations can use it to discuss race, religion, socioeconomic status, discrimination and the other issues “Souls of our Students” highlights.

“All faiths say we are to love God and love one another,” said Maria Hanlin, director of Mecklenburg Ministries. “And it doesn't qualify who the ‘other' is. The video does not advocate any particular stance on issues. It simply says how important it is that we treat one another with (the) love and respect with which we believe our creator has made us. That is a profound faith issue.”

Learning from others

Participants said that though they went on camera to tell their own stories, they, too, learned from hearing what the other students involved had to say.

“I don't think any of us had the details of being part of a minority” other than our own, said Rosenfeld, who now is a junior in high school in Fresno, Calif.

Alex Kilkka participated in “Souls of our Students” to talk about his experiences as a gay student. What he came away with, he said, was an appreciation of how much discrimination African Americans and ethnic minorities still face.

“It opened my mind as to how much racism plays a part in society,” said Kilkka, now a sophomore at UNC Chapel Hill. “Participating in the video really helped me be a better person.”

The video will get more exposure at the Levine Museum of the New South, where it is part of the “Changing Places” exhibit, which looks at the blend of cultures reshaping the Charlotte region.

But perhaps its widest viewing will come in Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools, where it will be part of the ninth-grade curriculum.

“I think with the changes going on in Mecklenburg County – the fact that every school is a school for English-language learners, every school is a school for students with different backgrounds, nationalities, creeds, color – if we can open up this discussion, … (we will) learn the importance of being accepting,” said Peter Gorman, CMS superintendent.

Some groups missing

“Souls of our Students” doesn't capture the souls of all students. The viewpoints of evangelical Christians aren't included, Gorman acknowledged, and there are no non-English-speaking students or kids who have physical disabilities. “We talked about ‘How do we be inclusive on everything?'” Gorman said. “We'd have the longest video in the world.”

Curriculum to go with the video has been written for private schools, Hanlin said, and some people at corporations have expressed interest in using it. The video has racked up endorsements from groups ranging from The Echo Foundation to the Urban League of the Central Carolinas.

“I think we can learn from the students,” Schindler said, “about how to have hard conversations and learn and grow from them.”

Mecklenburg Ministries presents "Souls of Our Students," a documentary which premieres Sunday, March 8th, 3:00 - 5:00 pm at ImaginOn, 300 East 7th Street, Charlotte. This program is planned in conjunction with Children's Theatre of Charlotte, Charlotte Coalition for Social Justice and Temple Beth El.