A webinar for St. Joe’s Feb. 13 Day of Dialogue was disrupted by several students making disrespectful comments in the chat.
The session “Hair Politics in the Workplace” was hosted by Megan V. Green, a hair activist, educator and founder of Crownworkshop, which provides educational programming, workshops and accessories, according to the Crownworkshop official website.
“The learning objectives for this workshop [were] to teach the history of African grooming practices, the impact of colonialism and how it influences workplace dynamics via microaggressions, respectability politics and hair discrimination,” Green wrote in response to written questions from The Hawk.
While Green was presenting, several students left comments in the chat, which, according to screenshots sent to The Hawk, mocked the session and its seriousness.
One participant commented in response, “Please be respectful. Time and place guys.”
Shekinah Davis M.A. ’24, who attended the session, was disappointed by the comments. Davis said as an African American, she knows what it’s like to be discriminated against because of her hair. Davis attended Green’s session to see how others related to her experiences and to learn more about the actions being taken against hair-based discrimination.
Although Davis did not personally see the comments in real-time, she could tell something was wrong when Green spoke up about the comments and said the students’ behavior wouldn’t be tolerated. Davis said the tone shifted from passionate and lighthearted to worried.
“I think in that moment, you’re trying to really fathom [that] this [is] really happening,” Davis said. “It’s Day of Dialogue. We’re supposed to be coming together to learn about differences and diversity and how to combat these things. And yet, here we go again with these kinds of instances.”
Green said when the comments appeared, she realized there was a disconnect between the commenters and the information she was presenting.
“They were insensitive and the clear sign[s] that [the students were] not fully open to new cultures and ways of experiencing the world without judgment,” Green wrote. “This is the issue, when one group identifies what is ‘acceptable’ and normalized – anything that deviates is judged harshly.”
St. Joe’s Day of Dialogue 2024 Facilitators’ Guide has a section discussing “Zoombombing,” which is the undesired disruption of an online session, often by internet trolls. The guide said facilitators should “remove problematic users and disable their ability to rejoin when asked.”
Green said the students making disrespectful comments were removed from the session.
Green said a professor reached out to her following the session, and she appreciated the gesture because it showed “solidarity and intolerance from Saint Joseph’s University.” Green said she has also communicated with the Day of Dialogue committee about the incident.
The Day of Dialogue co-chairs did not respond by press time to repeated requests from The Hawk about what disciplinary actions, if any, are being taken against the students who left the messages in the chat.
Ally Engelbert ’25 contributed to this story.
