Pace’s Black Student Union (BSU) hosted the Unearthing Our Voices event on Tue., Feb 3 at Kessel Student Center’s Multipurpose Room. The event was an open discussion about minority issues that have been underrepresented by the media.

A key idea during the discussion was the need for more involvement by the minority community. Issues discussed at the event included media recognition of mental illness among people of color, word choice by the media, and sexual orientation.

Attendees expressed that whenever a “minority accomplishes something,” coverage “lasts like a day.” Others said that minorities are not recognized for the positive things they do for the community.

Some believed that the media always looks to make things about race, and that sometimes the stories about minorities have no serious influence on society.

One student said that news media often uses words like “massacred” and “brutally killed” when dealing with interracial crime, compared with “shot” and “killed” when dealing with black on black crimes. Other people at the event said that the media ignores black on black crime altogether.

Director of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs Cornell Craig said that one thing that really stuck with people at the event was “Bleeds leads,” meaning that if there is a murder or other gruesome story, it will receive full attention because it will draw the most interest and cause the most controversy.

Craig also said that sometimes minorities set physical distances and incite divisions among them. He suggested that if minorities come together as a community, they could work toward solving the underlying problems that plague the nation.

Participants included BSU members Tianna Blount, Chrystal Azatassou, and Keeana Harris.