Lögberg - 12.08.1954, Page 7

LÖGBERG, FIMMTUDAGINN, 12. ÁGÚST, 1954
7
Manitoba teachers attending the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews “workshop”
here on racial and religious relations are sh own boarding a bus Tuesday for a tour of five
city churches and a synagogue. The workshop is being conducted in co-operation with
the University of Manitoba.
A Report on a Workshop
. in Humon Relations
for
School Administrators, Teachers, Social Workers,
Held at the University of Manitoba
July 2 — August 13, 1954
Submitted by Johanna Wilson
For Publication in the Icelandic Press
This summer the University of Manitoba has held a Work-
shop in Human Relations. This course is jointly sponsored by the
University and the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews. This
ls the first time that such a course has been offered in Manitoba.
has aroused the interest of many persons who would like to
know the whys and wherefors of an educational course that
appears to be rather extraordinary.
This article is written as a re-
P°rt on this experiment in
teaching Human Relations. It is
Wl"itten as an answer to ques-
tions about the course and it is
hoped that it will serve to en-
courage others to participate in
future workshops of this nature.
The Canadian Council of
Christians and Jews exists to
prornote justice, understanding,
arid cooperation between Can-
adians of all religious and ethnic
Sroups and thereby to strength-
en and extend the ideal of
brotherhood of man both within
C^nada and in the world com-
ruunity. It has five National
Commissions: education, re-
bgious, community, labor and
*nanagement, and mass com-
JUunications. It sponsors Brother
hood Week, whose principle aim
ls to give people an opportunity
to re-dedicate themselves as in-
hividuals to the basic ideals of
respect for people and human
rights which are essential to our
Way °f life. The organization is
'vholly supported by voluntary
contributions from individuals,
c°rporations, foundations, com-
hiunity organizations and relig-
l0us groups. The executive di-
rector is the Rev. Richard D.
°nes, who has been in charge of
arrangements with the Univer-
Slty in connection with this
c°urse.
To help young people to live
°gether in mutual respect and
nnderstanding with people of
diff,
diff,
erent religious loyalties and
ering racial and cultural
®chgrounds is one of the most
c allenging opportunities that
Can confront a teacher. There-
°re when the Workshop in Hu-
|han Relations was announced
y the University, it was viewed
Wlth considerable interest and
j.nthusiasm, inspiring twenty-
1Ve teachers to aply for the
tV>Urse. tt 1S interesting to record
at of this group of nine men
and sixteen women there were
^ePresented many of the racial,
e 11 g i o u s and ethnic back-
Sr°unds found in Canadian com-
t unities. The group was a mix-
t-'ath°lics, Protestants
? Jews, forming a mosaic eth-
1CallY of French Canadian,
Ukrainian, Scotch, English, Irish
Welsh, Mennonite and Icelandic
origin. The secretary for the
workshop was brought from the
Detroit office of the National
Conference of Christians and
Jews. As a member of the Negro
race, she was able to contribute
a great deal to the group dis-
cussions, and her personal
charm and quiet efficiency en-
deared her to the group.
The workshop was held from
July 2nd to August 13th from
10:40 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day
Monday through Friday. The
course has been most efectively
co-ordinated by Dr. Dennis Mc-
Genty, Sociologist and Pro-
fessor of Education and Pro-
gram Director of the National
Council of Christians and Jews.
From a rich background of ace-
demic achievement in the many
sociological fields of learning,
Dr. McGenty has been able to
capture and translate to the
group pertinent knowledge of
anthropology, sociology, psy-
chology as it may be interpreted
in the light of human relations.
Each morning the members of
the workshop met with Dr. Mc-
Genty in a formal session where
he would lecture to the group or
introduce a visiting consultant.
An interchange of opinions and
frank discussion of personal dif-
ferences as well as areas of
agreement were an integral part
of these sessions. During the
lunch hour the group enjoyed
discussions of the morning ses-
sion. There were varied activit-
ies in the afternoons. There
were Film Forums, Speakers,
Discussions, and demonstration
and participation in such edu-
cational techniques as Role-Play-
ing.
An initial activity was a tour
of the campus conducted by
Dean N. V. Scarfe to acquaint
the workshop members with
their surroundings, particularly
the University library and the
recreational facilities available.
The group themselves thought
that one way to learn about
other people was to try the food
of other ethnic and religious
groups. One might call the pro-
gressive diner held on July 21st
as “Food for Thought.” The
members contributed to the din-
ner and the group visited and
dined at the homes of three of
the members in turn. The menu
began with Jewish wine and
French Canadian Pea Soup. At
the next home in addition to
salads there were cold meats
such as salami and Kosher corn
beef. There were Ukranian cab-
bage rolls or holopchi, bagelech,
a Jewish pastry and konish broit
a Jewish cake. The party ended
at the home of an Icelandic mem
ber of the group where vínar-
terta, pönnukökkur and coffee
were served.
A pleasant after-class tea
party was held at the home of
one of the members on July 22.
A religious tour of five
churches and a synagogue on
July 27th proved a revelation to
the teachers. Brief interpreta-
tions of some basic principles of
the religious groups: Jewish,
Mennonite, Anglican, Roman
Catholic, Greek Orthodox and
United, were presenter by lead-
ers in these places of worship.
The final social session took
the form of a picnic excursion
to Victoria Beach on August 11,
when many interesting obser-
vations were made on the ex-
treme worth of the course and
promises were made for fre-
quént reunions.
Among the topics discussed
during the morning sessions
were:
I. What is Prejudice?
What is a Human Being?
S c h o o 1 Community Re-
lations.
The Teacher in the Com-
munity Setting.
Principles for Overcoming
Prejudice.
The Meanings of Terms used
in the Study of Intergroup
Relations.
Concepts of the Basic Needs
of Children.
A Study of Attitudes of Can-
adians to Americans at the
High School Level.
A Frame of Reference for
Intergroup Study.
10. Assimilation vs. Accommo-
dation.
II. Religious Understanding.
12. The Concept of Race.
13. Problems of Communication
14. Barriers to Human Under-
standing.
15. Basic Assumptions about the
Psychology of Prejudice.
16. The New Canadian.
17. Tensions in Canada.
18. Adult Education in Human
Relations.
The films which have been
viewed by the workshop parti-
cipants are as follows:
High Wall
Who Will Teach Your Child
Love Your Neighbor
Role Playing
One God
7.
8.
9.
Chuck Hansen: One Guy
Citizen Varek
The New Cqmers
Topics discussed by the visit-
ing consultants were:
The Teacher and the Com-
munity: Alice V. Myers, M.A
Program Director, Chicago
Area, National Conference
of Christians and Jews.
2. (a) Basic Childhood Needs,
(b) An Account of UNESCO
Conference, 1948, as an ex-
perience in intergroup re-
lations: Grace Dolmage, M.A
3. A Story of an Experiment of
Human Relations in Indus-
try: Donald Graham, Direct-
or of Education, Forest Hill
Village, Toronto, Ontario.
4. (a) Emotional Needs in the
Ltearning Process, (b) Role
Playing in Intergroup Re-
lations: Vernon Trott, Psy-
chological Director of Guid-
ance, Forest Hill Village,
Toronto, Ontario.
5. An Account of a Study of
Attitude Relationships Acros
Canada of High School Stu-
dents Towards Americans:
J.E.M. Young, Ph. D., Psy-
chologist, Professor of Edu-
cation.
6. The Integrations of the Ice-
lander into the Canadian
Scene: Judge W. J. Lindal.
7. (a) Basic Assumptions about
the Psychology of Prejudice.
(b) Explorations in t h e
Group Psychology of Mont-
real, (c) Attempts at Improv
ing Inter-Ethnic Relations in
Montreal: Father Bernard
Mailhiot, Psychology Depart
ment, University of Mont-
real.
8. How the Citizenship Com-
mittee of Manitoba Helps
New Canadians: A.S.R.
Tweedie, M.A., Director, De-
partment of University Ex-
tension and Adult Education
University of Manitoba.
9. How Governmental and Non
governmental Agencies As-
sist New Canadians: Jean Le-
gace, Regional Represent-
ative of the Citizenship
Branch of the Department of
Citizenship and Immigration
10. The Cultural Fusion of the
Eastern and Western People
for Group Survival in Hong
Kong—a Unique Phenomena
in Itself: Dean Kenneth
Priestley, Dean of Education
University of Hong Kong.
11. Tensions in Canada, Ethnic-
ally, Religiously and Cultur-
ally: Charles Hendry, Di-
rector, School of Social Work
University of Toronto.
12. The Integration of the Jew-
ish People into the American
and Canadian Scene: Rabbi
Arthur Chiel, Rosh Pina
Synagogue.
13. (a) The Importance of Teach-
ing Human Relations in
School, (b) The Work of the
Canadian Council of Christ-
ians and Jews, (c) Brother-
hood Week Explained: Rich-
ard D. Jones, M.A., Execu-
tive Director, Canadian
Council of Christians and
Jews.
It is difficult to measure or
even to estimate all the benefits
that this workshop has created
in changing attitudes, building
understanding and creating
good will among the members of
this group of twenty-five teach-
ers, and as this group take their
places in the area of their school
and community this greater un-
derstanding will be a very real
part of their daily living as a
human being, a citizen and as a
teacher.
Judge Lindal's Address
Judge W.J. Lindal addressed
the Workshop Group in Human
Relations at the University of
Manitoba on the Integration of
the Icelanders into the Canadian
Scene. He told a very interested
audience about the early origin
of the Icelandic people coming
as they did from Norway to Ice-
land 1000 years ago. He spoke of
their love of freedom, their lang-
uage, their literature and their
parliament.
He pointed out that there are
only about 150,000 Icelanders in
the world and 20,000 migrated to
America from 1875-1910. When
these people came to Canada
they were very anxious to be-
come good Canadians, to comply
with the law and to learn the
language quickly. They took
part in civic affairs and when
war was declared in 1914 there
were many Icelanders who en-
listed for service .
Judge Lindal spoke of the es-
tablishment of a chair in Ice-
landic language and literature.
He said that this chair is a very
important one because the Ice-
landic language is the only one
of the early Teutonic or Ger-
manic languages still in use to-
day.
He concluded with some de-
tails of the work of Citizenship
Committee and stressed the fact
that in knowing something
about each other, in adopting a
sympathetic attitude to the new-
comer, helping him to acquire
the qualities which we feel are
distinctive of the Canadian way,
we can be of useful service in
the building of the Canadian
nation which means so much to
us and to the free world.
Fréttir fró ríkisútvarpi íslands
18. JÚLI
Fyrrihluta vikunnar var mest
suðvestlæg átt og óþurrkar á
suður- og vesturlandi, en bjart-
viðri norðanlands.
☆
Sendiherra Svisslands á ís-
landi, Gaston Jaccard, afhenti á
miðvikudaginn forseta Islands
trúnaðarbréf sitt við hátíðlega
athöfn á Bessastöðum að utan-
ríkisráðherra viðstöddum.
☆
Ismay lávarður, framkvæmda-
stjóri Atlantshafsbandalagsins,
kom í opinbera heimsókn til
Reykjavíkur síðastliðinn sunnu-
dag. I för með honum voru 5
starfsmenn bandalagsins og
fastafulltrúi íslands þar, Hans G.
Andersen.
☆
Síðastliðna viku hefur síld-
veiði verið dágóð með köflum
norðanlands. Við lok fyrri viku
höfðu 89 skip einhvern afla og
nam heildaraflinn um það bil 30
þúsund málum og tunnum og
var það svipað magn og á sama
tima í fyrra.
☆
Nú er ekki nema tæpur fjórð-
ungur togaraflotans á veiðum,
en þeir sem enn veiða, fiska
f.!estir fyrir frystihúsin og þrír
eru gerðir út á síldveiðar.
☆
Vísitala framfærslukostnaðar í
Reykjavík 1. júlí reyndist vera
159 stig.
☆
Geir Arnesen efnafræðingur,
sem unnið hefir að rannsóknum
saltgulu í rannsóknarstofu
Fiskifélags íslands, hefur komizt
að raun um það, að frumorsök
gulunnar sé koparefnasamband
eða koparsalt, sem hægt er að
hreinsa úr saltinu. Gula á salt-
fiski hefir valdið milljónatjóni
hér á landi síðustu árin.
☆
Ríkisstjórn íslands hefir látið
reisa minnisvarða á grafreit
franskra sjómanna í gamla
kirkjugarðinum í Reykjavík.
Var minnisvarðinn afhjúpaður á
þjóðhátíðardegi Frakka og til-
kynnti Ólafur Thors forsætisráð-
herra, að varðinn hefði verið
reistur sem tákn virðingar ís-
lendinga fyrir frönskum sjó-
mönnum, franskri hétjulund og
frönsku þjóðinni. Sendiherra
Frakka, Henri Voillery, þakkaði
með ræðu.
☆
Áttundu ráðstefnu veðurstofu
stjóra Norðurlanda lauk í Reykja
vík síðastliðinn miðvikudag og
var ákveðið að næsta ráðstefna
þeirra skuli haldin í Osló á næsta
ári. —
☆
Douglasflugvélin Snæfaxi frá
Flugfélagi íslands lenti á hinum
nýja flugvelli í Grímsey síðast-
liðinn miðvikudag. Er það fyrsta
stóra farþegaflugvélin, sem þar
lendir. Grímseyingar fjölmenntu
til að taka á móti flugvélinni og
bauð Flugfélagið 30 manns í
hringflug yfir Grímsey. Flug-
brautin er 1000 metra löng, mal-
borin, og reyndist hún ágætlega,
enda þótt vinnu við hana sé ekki
fyllilega lokið.
☆
Iðnaðarbanki Islands opnaði
útibú á Keflavíkurflugvelli s.l.
þriðjudag.
☆
Skálholtsfélagið efnir til hinn-
ar árlegu hátíðar sinnar í Skál-
holti í dag. Hófst hátíðin með
guðsþjónustu og gengu við-
staddir prestar hempuklæddir í
skrúðgöngu til kirkjunnar Bisk-
upinn yfir Islandi, Dr. Ás-
mundur Guðmundsson, prédik-
aði við guðsþjónustuna, en séra
Bjarni Jónsson vígslubiskup
þjónaði fyrir altari. Eftir guðs-
þjónustuna hófst útisamkoma.
☆
Skógræktarfélag íslands hélt
aðalfund sinn að Hallormsstað í
byrjun þessa mánaðar. Formað-
ur félagsins, Valtýr Stefánsson
ritstjóri, stýrði fundi. Hákon
Bjarnason skógræktarstjóri
flutti ýtarlega skýrslu um starf-
semi félagsins á liðnu ári.
☆
Hofskirkja í Öræfum var vígð
síðastliðinn sunnudag að við-
stöddu fjölmenni. Kirkjan var
nýlega endurbyggð.
☆
Félögin menningartengsl ís-
lands og Ráðstjórnarríkjanna, og
Voks í Moskvu hafa boðið sjö ís-
lenzkum menntamönnum til
kynnisfarar um Ráðstjórnarríkin
og fóru þeir á miðvikudags-
morgun.
☆
Flugbjörgunarsveitin í Reykja
vík hefir fengið sporhund af blóð
bundakyni frá Bandaríkjunum
og er ætlunin að nota hann við
leit að týndum mönnum í byggð-
um og óbyggðum.
☆
Evrópumeistaramótið í frjálsum
íþróttum fer fram í Bern í Sviss-
landi í lok næsta mánaðar. —
Frjálsíþróttaráð Islands skipaði
nefnd til þess að sjá um undir-
búning að þátttöku íslenzkra
íþróttamanna í mótinu og hefir
nefndin sett skilyrði um lág-
marksafrek, er íslenzkir íþrótta-
menn verða að ná til að koma til
greina. — Meistaramót íslands í
frjálsum íþróttum fer fram í
ágústbyrjun og verða þá endan-
lega valdir þátttakendur í Ev-
rópumeistaramótinu.
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