Higher Education Exchange 1994.

Seven articles explore ways in which students, administrators, and faculty can initiate and sustain conversation about the public life they share, and about dealing with the multiculturalism of today's campuses. The articles are: (1) "Backing into the Future: Columbus, Cleopatra, Custer, & the Diversity Revolution" by Carlos E. Cortes, which examines issues of political correctness in the history curriculum; (2) "Moderating Excess: Monocultural Roots of Multiculturalism" by Benjamin R. Barber, which suggests that "honest multiculturalism" will acknowledge and explore its "monocultural roots"; (3) "Shredding the Race Card" by Eric Liu, who urges young people to extricate themselves from the 1960s agenda and create a new one for themselves; (4) "Political Correctness: On How To Begin the Discussion" by Manfred Stanley, who identifies a new "politics of empathy"; (5) "Community and Group Identity: Fostering Mattering" by Daryl G. Smith, who sees memberships and participation as important for community-building; (6) "Under the Skin" by John Lahr, who reviews Anna Deavere Smith's dramatic dialogues about race, listening to strangers, and the importance of hearing voices and not just relying on the printed word; and (7) "Dialogue To Change Conflictual Relationships" by Harold H. Saunders and Randa Slim, who sketch a political process in their international work that may be of value to campuses with deep divisions and factions. (The Smith paper contains references.) (MAH)