Race relations pioneer Jane Elliott
among speakers for March programs

Race relations pioneer Jane Elliott will speak on campus at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 3, for the university's Spring Cultural Expressions lecture.

Free and open to the public, Elliott's talk, "The Anatomy of Prejudice," will be held in the North Cafeteria of Webb Center. It is sponsored by Multicultural Student Services as part of the Women's History Month celebration.

Elliott, a former teacher from Iowa, is committed to being a leader in the fight against prejudice, ignorance and racism in society. She has been featured on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" for her thought-provoking exercise "Blue or Brown Eyes," in which divides people on the basis of two arbitrary physical features as part of a lesson in discrimination.

Her work has been the subject of three documentaries, "Eyes of the Storm," "Eye of the Beholder" and "Blue Eyed." Elliott will be the subject of a feature film to be produced by Disney, with Susan Sarandon playing the lead role.

Elliott's talk is designed to build up a realistic microcosm of society. For the first time, many audience members will experience the feeling of being discriminated against, in the same way others have been discriminated against in society on the basis of gender, race, homosexuality or disability.

Also scheduled through the first week of March are:

  • March 1 - Women's History: What Are We Celebrating?" presented by Jody Wolford-Tucker and Emily Haynes of the Women's Center, noon to 1 p.m., Isle of Wight Room, Webb Center.
  • March 2 - Historical Perspective on Contraception, presented by Dr. Susan A. Ballagh, assistant professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School and the Jones Institute for Reproductive Medicine, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Cape Charles Room, Webb Center.
  • March 3 - Women's Self-Leadership, presented by Pamela Waitkus, health educator with the Student Health Center, noon to 1 p.m., Virginia Beach Room, Webb Center.
  • March 4 - Dancing Our Stories, a performance by Old Dominion dance students, with choreography by Melody Ward of the dance department, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Room 156, Diehn Fine and Performing Arts Center.

    For more information about Women's History Month events, call 683-4109.