A DJS Journey

  Rebeca Salinas is a second year social work student. She uses she/her pronouns and identifies as a gay Chicana. As a result of her love for talking and socializing, the roles she plays on campus include Ordal RA & Latinx Unidos Ambassador.  Growth Means Acknowledging Your Mistakes Out Loud Everyone has things they have to apologize for. However, being put in a position where you have to willingly accept responsibility for something negative can be discouraging and even embarrassing. As a prideful person myself, I tend to try and do everything right the first time in order to avoid making a mistake I would have to apologize for later. I soon came to find out this mindset ended up being a barrier, preventing my growth in my DJS journey.  There are many things I have had to learn in order to deepen my understanding of the role systematic racism plays in our society today. I am privileged to have had resources and opportunities made accessible to me in order to be able to educate mys

      My name is Marae Tidwell (she/they) I am a Sociology Major with a minor in Communications. I hold many titles at PLU, my leading ones being Black Student Union President, the Access, Leadership, and Inclusion Student Engage Ambassador, and ASPLU ‘21 Senator. The obstacles I’d experienced at PLU compelled me to take on leadership positions but the struggles did not stop there. My story explains where I am now in my DJS -and leadership journey. Diversity, Justice, and Sustainability Through My Eyes      Diversity - the opposite of homogeneity or sameness. To represent a variety of identities, experiences, opinions, and perspectives      Justice - the balance and practice of equity and equality       Sustainability -  meeting the needs of the present in an equitable, efficient, fair, and lasting fashion       We have this idea that DJS work is all positive but it can be hard, it can be messy, it can be ugly, it can show true colors and true intentions. Even in a community as acc

       My name is Hunter Hobbs (I picked it out myself and I love it) and I use he/him pronouns. I’m a senior and an English Literature and Classics double major.  I’m a trans man that predominantly works for RHA as Sustainability Director. I work with Sunrise Tacoma as well. On campus, you can either find me in my room, working at the library, or hanging out with my friends socially distanced.  Dear Past Me,            The world has changed and is much bigger than the school in which you were raised. You’ve moved past the school that had a museum of culture blocked on the internet. You moved past the place where if you were different then you had to endure the judging looks of the adults.                           There are more types of people than the ones who look and think like you. You moved into a state where it is safe and accepted to be different.  It’s okay to be different and if someone is different than you that’s okay too. It’s not your business to police someone else’s li

     Rosario Jesús Treviño Yoson is a 2nd year majoring in Economics. They identify as a mixed queer transmasculine person using he/they pronouns. He plans to use their degree to address food insecurity. As a Diversity Center Advocate, you can find him in several virtual dCenter spaces, including Thursday evening Study Hall, the Latinx Student Union on Wednesday evenings, and Talk Story on Friday afternoons.  Lavender Rights Project, and the WA Black Trans Task Force      I believe organizations serving others should be primarily led by members of the respective communities. As a trans person, I see constant media stories, films, or articles written and created by non-trans people. Despite sometimes the best intentions, these outside representations come off as clumsy. At worst, they grossly misrepresent the transgender experience, with no input from trans creators- and serve as fuel for the ongoing violence and discrimination against us. How does media representation apply to activism