Women In Black stand weekly to share protest on OSU campus

By MARY ANN ALBRIGHT
Gazette-Times reporter

Since October 2001, a group of women at Oregon State University have donned black attire and stood silently for an hour each Thursday to protest war, violence and human rights abuses.

They belong to an international peace network called Women In Black.

OSU’s Women In Black usually congregate in the Memorial Union. This week, they moved to the quad to support students protesting a recent editorial in the student newspaper and widely publicized Danish cartoons believed by some to attack the Muslim faith.

“We’re here to support the Arab and Muslim students,” said Lani Roberts, assistant professor in OSU’s philosophy department and longtime Women In Black participant. “They’ve been under attack, they’ve been made to feel uncomfortable on campus. Supporting them is in line with the Women In Black’s mission.”

Women In Black was founded by Palestinian and Jewish women in Israel in 1988. The group believes that keeping a silent vigil allows the women grieve for all those affected by war.

“It’s basically grieving for what we human beings are doing to each other,” Roberts said.

Armelle Hofer, a French instructor at OSU, started regularly attending Women In Black vigils this year.

“I just like the silent protest,” she said. “I’ve done a lot of protesting that turned out to be violent words exchanged. I like that this is more calm and meditative.”

Be Davison Herrera, a Corvallis sculptor, enjoys how Women In Black unites the “town and gown” communities to champion a worthy cause.

Despite the cold weather Thursday, Roberts, Hofer and Herrera, along with OSU student Molly Chambers and community members Mary Ann Bedwell, LoErna Simpson and Carol Bosworth, stood stoically in the quad during the noon hour, watching silently as Muslim and Arab student groups, along with the Associated Students of OSU, spoke against anti-Muslim sentiments.

Simpson began attending OSU’s Women In Black vigils in 2002.

“I’m especially committed to helping fight for peace and justice because we have three Muslim grandchildren,” Simpson said. “I’m a Christian, but I believe all faiths are of value.”

At a glance

Women In Black stands in silent vigil from noon to 1 p.m. every Thursday in the Oregon State University Memorial Union.

For more information about Women In Black at OSU, contact Lani Roberts at lroberts@oregonstate.edu or see www.womeninblack.org.

For more information about the Albany/Corvallis Women In Black, e-mail calex@peak.org or call 791-8818.

Mary Ann Albright covers higher education. She can be reached at maryann.albright@lee.net or 758-9518.