Here at The Daily Eastern News, we value the diversity of the students on campus. The array of differences present in our community is what makes Eastern a unique and culturally-stimulating university to attend.

Despite this, in our society people are still condemned for wanting to live in solidarity with the rest of America. There is still a social gap between those who possess cultural or social differences that can result in discrimination.

We want to be sure that students on campus take the opportunity to participate in events on campus that are created to spread awareness and eradicate hatred on our campus, while also learning about the past and different cultures.

This is why we want to encourage students to attend events during Social Justice and Diversity Week.

Creating an open-minded, well-informed environment for students is imperative to ensuring that students are able to learn effectively and feel comfortable on our campus.

During Social Justice and Diversity Week, hosted by the Residence Hall Association this Monday through Thursday, students are given the opportunity to attend several events that highlight the attributes that make us unique as students and to stand up against oppression that has been wrongly thrust upon those who only wished to live their lives and express their own identities in peace.

These events include “Tie-Diversity” on Monday, the “Tunnel of Oppression” on Tuesday, the “Hunger Banquet” on Wednesday and “Break Hate” on Thursday.

Remembering the oppression of those who have been minoritized or condemned just for wanting to practice their own religion or their sexual preference is important, so this kind of treatment is never seen as acceptable in modern society.

The News wants students on campus to feel comfortable expressing themselves on our campus without fear of being reprimanded.

Eastern strives to welcome diversity through religious and multicultural registered student organizations. By finding these organizations, hopefully we can find the tolerance and kindness we need to bring students together and combat hate.

Students should put effort into being versatile and showing interest in learning about different perspectives and social or ethnic groups outside of their own.

It is through this that we can make others feel welcome in all kinds of spaces. Having love and understanding for others can help to combat the ignorance of the past and create more inclusive tomorrows for future generations of learners at our university and in the rest of the world.