Kalan Horton Provides Perspective
The Anderson Institute on Race and Ethnicity spoke recently with Kalan Horton, president of the UALR chapter of the NAACP, to get a student perspective about the impact of the recent presidential election on people of color.
“Honestly, this last election cycle has really opened my eyes to how much work needs to be done in minority communities,” Kalan said. “The irrefutable fact is people are fearful and insensitive to the unknown; therefore, it still stands true that we can alleviate countless problems by increasing levels and quality of education.”
When we asked if he was surprised at the outcome of the election, he replied, “I was surprised more so at the boldness that resulted than the actual election results… racism, prejudice, and systematic oppression still run rampant in the United States.” However, he felt confident that “these next 4 years will provide for a reflective amount of internal progress for all minority communities” seeking to address those questions.
Finally, we asked what advice he would give president-elect Donald Trump. Kalan said he would tell the president-elect that “Hard-work and genuine intentions will persuade a lot of people,” adding “no one can argue with someone who gets the job done.”
Paola Cavallari Performs Research
Anderson Institute Intern Paola Cavallari is researching and analyzing police shootings involving African Americans that occurred in Arkansas starting in 1942, particularly the role that Dr. William Townsend and other prominent African Americans from Little Rock played in pursuing justice for Edward Jones, Jr., who was killed by a Little Rock police officer in 1977.
Paola is from Termoli, Italy, a small town on the Adriatic Sea in the region called Molise. She will receive her bachelor’s degree in political science from UALR in December 2016. After graduation she will return to UALR to earn a Master of Arts in Public History.
She plans to pursue a career that focuses on social and racial justice that will have a policy-making orientation.
