The Somerville Club hosted Rotary Global Grant Scholar Yumeka Kawahara at its meeting in January. Her talk was titled “How Refugees in the US learn about American Racism.” It was very informative and sparked a great conversation among members of the club.
Consistent with the Rotary focus on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Ms. Kawahara’s presentation reminded us that many refugees to this country have little knowledge of US diversity, racial and ethnic relations, or racism prior to arrival. Once here, schools, social media, and workplace experiences were the primary places that people learned about diversity. While the study identified shortcomings in how we educate newcomers about American society, nearly all of the participants in the study viewed the United States as the “land of opportunity.”
As a Rotary Global Grant Scholar, Ms. Kawahara was sponsored by the Sapporo East Rotary Club of Japan and hosted by the Somerville Rotary Club. She will graduate from the Fletcher School of International Relations in May and undertook the study as part of her graduate degree.
The purpose of the Rotary Global Grant Scholar program is to further international understanding and peaceful relations among people of different international backgrounds. The Somerville Club is proud to have coordinated with the Sapporo club, and other clubs worldwide, to sponsor many students over the years.
Pictured here are Global Grant Scholar Yumeka Kawahara and Somerville Rotary President David Worzala.