Speech focuses on violence in media, society

By Johanna Wetmore

For the Daily

"Be the change you want to see," concluded Lawrence Carter last night in a speech delivered as part of Victory Over Violence Week.

Carter, dean of the Martin Luther King International Chapel at Morehouse College in Atlanta, addressed the audience at the Michigan Union Ballroom in a 75-minute speech profiling among others Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. as the originators in the practice of non-violence.

Carter cited media tactics for the perpetuation of human violent behavior.

"If the repeated image of a Coke is used to make us want to drink Coke, how can the repeated images of gunplay and violence have no impact on us whatsoever?" he asked. "By spending money to see violent films, you send the message as to what you as the public want to see."

In its group statement, the Victory over Violence campaign was "born from the concern over the alarming rise in violent crime among youth" to spread its message of non-violence and to help young people counteract the route cause of violence.

Carter reinforced the methods of the Victory over Violence campaign, saying, "What our world most requires now is education, that favors love of mankind and empowerment to improve society."

Carter challenged University students to "work on your conscience to create a new conscience of peace within yourself."

In response to the frustration students may feel about embarking on this challenge, Carter said, "Our society is full of high achievers that make it look impossible to do any better or make a difference.

"If I had had a deeper appreciation of time when I was younger, I would have understood that it all depends on coming from a positive perspective," he said. "Even in planting the seed of an idea we begin to make a difference."

Engineering senior Masakazu Sueda, one of the coordinators from Student Division, a University sponsor for the Victory over Violence activities, helped to bring Carter to campus.

"Dr. Carter has a great understanding of our movement," he said. "In the 20th Century, people try to change society from outside with war. Now it is important to have dialogue, to change ourselves from within."

Sueda said he hopes University students will use Carter's words as a stepping stone to improve themselves and help others.

LSA junior Jamila Stewart, a representative of the Undergraduate Psychology Association for Students of Color, another sponsoring student group, was not alone in her disappointment at the small turnout.

"A lot of people missed a very inspirational speech," she said.