Cardigan Boys Attend Students of Color Conference

“All aspects of one’s identity converge to overlay into our unique selves; then society sorts us into boxes in an effort to create systems. Intentionally and unintentionally, systems discriminate between boxes. When inside our boxes, who do we become? How do we mark the walls of our boxes? What expression moves through you and out into the world, spilling the contents out for all of humanity to see? What contents of your box would be here, there, and everywhere?” (from Middle School Students of Color Conference) 

This past weekend nine students from Cardigan attended the Middle School Students of Color Conference organized by the Association of Independent Schools of New England (AISNE); the conference focused on this theme—of discovering the stories of the individuals inside the boxes.

The conference opened with keynote speaker Jerry Craft, the author of the 2020 Newbery Award winner and 2020 Coretta Scott King Book Award winner New Kid, “a graphic novel about starting over at a new school, where diversity is low and the struggle to fit in is real.” All the students who attended the conference were given an autographed copy of the book.

Students also attended numerous workshops and activities throughout the day. Along with students from 35 other schools throughout New England, the Cardigan boys had the opportunity to try African dancing and Zumba and improv as well as participate in group discussions about prejudice, inequality, and colorism–or discrimination based on skin color; usually colorism occurs among members of the same race in which people are treated differently based on the cultural mores attached to skin color.

“One thing that stuck with me was the topic of colorism and how racism isn't exactly colorism,” says Domineaq “Dom” Taylor ’22 who attended the conference. “I hope to learn more about this topic through discussions in my English and Leadership classes. I want colorism to be talked about and what it means to people.”

Carter Davis ’22, who also attended the conference, agrees. He also hopes that now that he is back on campus he can share a message of encouragement with his classmates: “I want to spread the word that we have the power within all of us; this conference really brought that out in us.”

Director of Student Life Nick Nowak, who attended the conference as the boys’ chaperone, also acknowledged the power of the conference and said he believes that it gave students an opportunity to be with other students who share their experiences and gave them a place in which they didn’t have to worry about fitting in or being different.

While the workshops were designed for students, chaperones, including Mr. Nowak, had their own opportunities to explore diversity, equity, and inclusion. “We spent a lot of time talking about the underlying structures and patterns of racial injustice that are inherent in our society and how we can actively disrupt that system,” says Mr. Nowak. “It’s a topic that we intend to focus on at Cardigan in the next academic year, and the tools and resources I collected during this conference will be really helpful as I prepare for that work.”

While this was the first student of color conference the Cardigan boys have attended, it certainly will not be the last. The individual lessons learned were powerful, and the benefits to the community as students return and share their knowledge could very well be countless.