Lesley Batson says she experienced racial tension in Carbondale first-hand after greeting the busload of people that had participated in the Million Man March.

She said a white woman with whom she watches television with in the Student Center had seen her holding a sign of support for the march.

She was sitting in her usual spot, and I went to sit in my usual spot, Batson said. She moved one chair down. Nothing more needed to be said. That was the most direct hit of racial tension I’ve ever experienced.

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Batson, a representative of Zeta Phi Beta, participated in a panel on Tuesday sponsored by the Black Affairs Council titled Race Relations:Moving Toward the Next Millennium. Panel members were Kim Clemens; vice president for Undergraduate Student Government; Troy Alim, coordinator of BAC; Marc Chase, editor-in-chief of the DE; Rhys Williams, professor of sociology and Nancy Dawson, assistant professor of Black American Studies; and Batson, who is also the 1995 Homecoming queen.

The Student Center Auditorium was filled with about 60 people who also participated in the discussion, and debates grew heated when participants urged others to stand up and support people who had voiced problems and concerns.

Minister Enoch X, audience member, said black people cannot be racist because black people are oppressed and was met by loud applause.

Many times Alim and Latasha Randle, the moderator, reminded audience speakers to be respectful to the panelists, and also to be mindful of time constraints.

Alim said the purpose of the panel was to take a look at what people see and understand or do not understand about individuals.

I met a young woman here at this institution who before coming here had never in her life met, spoken to, or seen with her own eyes a person of African decent, Alim said. She had only seen individuals on television George Jefferson and Urkel. This was her extent of knowledge concerning people of African descent. That’s a major problem.

Dawson said there is not a level of comfort in this University between races.

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I can always tell where, for example, students tend to sit in the cafeteria, she said. A lot of the black students get together, and a lot of the white students get together.

Current events, such as the Rodney King incident and the O.J. Simpson trial, were discussed to debate whether or not race relations have improved because of the media coverage.

Williams said the King incident had the shock value for people who think those types of stories are products of paranoia.

I had people who were not usually sympathetic to minority groups saying, That’s unbelievable how can people get away with that kind of stuff,’ Williams said.

Several audience members sharply criticized the panel because of the lack of diversity between racial groups that attended.

Many made impassioned speeches about alleged prejudicial treatment on the Carbondale campus, including a man who stated SIUC’s security division was unfair to minorities.

Audience member Tammy Holmes, a freshman in education from Marion, said racial tension is a mainstream topic that needs to be dealt with.

At times, the discussion got off the topic, but in all actuality it was very productive, she said. At least you know where people stand on the issue. The main point is communication. Without it, the problem will continue to grow.

Alim said a panel discussion like this one will probably be held some time next semester.

We’ll try to get more organizations involved next semester, like SPC and International Student Council, he said. I got a lot of feedback from people, and they felt it was a good start to things and that they hope it continues.