May 12, 2008 - 04:05:28 CDT
DICKINSON (AP) - Administrators at Dickinson State University have been working to ease disputes involving groups of international students.The most recent incident involved a "Free Tibet" bumper sticker. A group of Chinese students felt the sticker was disrespectful and approached the driver of the car, asking for an explanation.
"We just discuss. We just want to know why," said Tian Lan, a student from Chengdu, China.
Students on both sides of the issue gathered around the car, said Corey Michalos, a resident director at DSU.
"A large number of Chinese students started showing up, and it became this large group of people all kind of addressing this one female," Michalos said.
University staff and campus security responded to defuse the situation. Michalos, who did not witness the incident, learned about it by reading a security report the next day.
"It was all pretty peaceful. I mean, no one was hurt," he said. "It wasn't physical, but you could see it was kind of overwhelming for that one person."
Chinese students met the day after the incident and decided to make T-shirts to express their stance on Tibet, an ethnically distinct region in Southwest China. Tian Lan said more than 20 students have made shirts. His read, "Say 'NO!' to the people who want to separate China."
Tian Lan said many people have received incorrect information about Tibet.
"Tibet is part of China," Tian Lan said.
On a campus with nearly 400 international students representing more than 30 countries, such conflicts are not new, said Thy Yang, DSU's director of multicultural affairs.
"The debate of the China policy is not a new one here at this campus. We've had tensions in the past with Chinese and Mongolian students. We've had tensions in the past where people talk about Taiwan," Yang said.
The T-shirts worn by Chinese students created a stir on campus, Michalos said, and he had to explain the dispute.
"The good part of this is that the domestic students actually started talking about it because most of them didn't even know," he said.
Michalos said that after the April 21 incident, vehicles decorated with "Free Tibet" slogans and posters showed up on campus, some in a hall without administration permission.
Hal Haynes, DSU's vice president for student development, said the matter has gone through the university's process for reviewing potential violations of the student conduct code. Haynes said he could not disclose details about the review because of federal privacy rules.
Two people getting into cars that displayed "Free Tibet" messages declined to comment. Through the school's multicultural affairs office, The Dickinson Press offered students on the Tibetan side of the incident the chance to be interviewed but no one responded.
Yang said DSU has one student from Tibet who is a Chinese national and another student who is ethnically Tibetan but lives in India. There are about 130 Chinese students on campus, she said.
With the Olympics being held in China this summer, the country has been subject to greater media scrutiny. Clashes between Tibetan protesters and Chinese authorities have been highlighted, along with protests of the Olympic torch relay and calls to boycott the games. In April, Duke University saw pro-Tibet protests and counter-protests from Chinese students.
"With the increased media exposure to the Olympics and Beijing, you see a lot of students becoming more sensitive to anti-Chinese, or what is perceived as anti-Chinese sentiments in the United States," Yang said.
Haynes said U.S.-style free speech is a new concept for some international students.
"It's a real eye-opening experience for all of our students from other countries," he said. "The values we hold near and dear here are an adjustment. No question about it."
root wrote on May 12, 2008 4:02 PM:
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