{"id":1139,"date":"2018-01-16T13:28:30","date_gmt":"2018-01-16T19:28:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.winona.edu\/insights\/?p=1139"},"modified":"2018-01-16T15:31:12","modified_gmt":"2018-01-16T21:31:12","slug":"all-are-welcome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.winona.edu\/insights\/all-are-welcome\/","title":{"rendered":"All Are Welcome"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"All<\/a>

All are welcome at Winona State University<\/p><\/div>\n

Dear Colleagues,<\/p>\n

As we settle into the spring semester, and as we reflect on the contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. toward building a more inclusive American society, let’s make one thing clear:<\/p>\n

All are welcome at Winona State University.<\/p>\n

Haitians and Haitian-Americans are welcome.<\/p>\n

Africans and African-Americans are welcome.<\/p>\n

Norwegian and Norwegian-Americans are welcome, too.<\/p>\n

All are welcome: the Dakota and Lakota whose land this is, the Ojibwe, the Hochunk, the Potawatame, and all the indigenous peoples of the world.<\/p>\n

Canadians and Mexicans are welcome. So are Europeans and European-Americans, Asians and Asian-Americans, Australians and Pacific Islanders, Central and South Americans.<\/p>\n

All are welcome: male or female, straight or gay, trans or cis, young or old, disabled or abled.<\/p>\n

All are welcome: Hindus, Zoroastrians, Jews, Jains, Confucians, Buddhists, Taoists, Shintoists, Christians, Muslims, Sikhs, Deists, Baha\u2019i, Scientologists, Agnostics, and Atheists.<\/p>\n

All are welcome: Republicans and Democrats, Libertarians and Socialists, ideologues and independents, Conservatives and Liberals, Voters and Non-Voters.<\/p>\n

All are welcome at Winona State University.<\/p>\n

Our university’s symbol is a torch shaped like the letter \u201cW.\u201d The torch\u2019s flame lights our way. Our nation is also led by a flame, held aloft by Liberty. Thanks to the words of Emma Lazarus, Liberty herself tells us what we must do:<\/p>\n

Here at our gates we stand with a torch,
\nwhose flame is the imprisoned lightning,
\nand our name is Mother of Exiles.
\nAnd from our beacon-hand glows world-wide:<\/p>\n

“WELCOME!”<\/p>\n

Sincerely yours,<\/p>\n

Scott R. Olson
\nPresident<\/p>\n

Student Produced #YouAreWelcomeHere Video<\/h2>\n

Diversity makes our community richer in so many ways. Students from different countries, cultures and backgrounds share how they have been welcomed at Winona State University.<\/p>\n