cixelsyd Posted March 30, 2022 Share Posted March 30, 2022 8 hours ago, 2000Cadet said: It's clear that neither of you really understand the meaning of being inclusive. You will have to forgive us. These days, many words are taking on alternative connotations. Quote I do not believe ANYONE is accusing drum corps of being racist Glad we cleared that up. Quote just as no one accused people in drum corps of being sexual predators. Not following you there. Several people in drum corps have been accused of being sexual predators, investigated, proven, and are now removed from the activity for that reason. Maybe what you meant to say was that no one is accusing "drum corps" generally of being predatory. (Though honestly, that is debatable.) Quote But some people who have marched drum corps have not had the same feeling as others and because you have never seen nor experienced it, does not mean it doesn't exist. And because you choose not to open your mind and understand why certain people feel the way they do is indicative of how much of a microcosm the drum corps community is of this country. There is no point trying to make people understand another point of view because many people just dismiss it as ridiculous, etc. It is not an easy conversation to have. I will probably fail at it, but here goes. Quote You two specifically need to read the article below and maybe understand just ONE point of view. I assure you, there are many people who feel the same way. That is a shame, because the article you point to describes one of the innumerable success stories of drum corps - Ricardo Brown, Cadets mega-soloist, currently brass co-caption head with Mandarins. Honestly, that article does little to help me understand his point of view, as it is laced with inferences to racism from its author but no detail from the interviewee. The one episode that is described in detail (starting on third soprano) had nothing to do with race... that was a common practice at that time which has happened to people of all identities. I am left unsure what the major takeaways should be from that article. But your concern was about whether drum corps is "inclusive". Frankly, drum corps has never been inclusive, and to my profound disappointment, probably never will be. It started out as an inherently exclusive activity (only available to members of the sponsoring civic organization). It grew more inclusive over the decades, but swung back to become exclusive once again over the DCI era. Because of its expense, the DCI activity is now essentially a small collection of advanced-placement summer marching band programs, and the world of scholastic music is a better place in which to pursue inclusivity. If you want the drum corps activity to be inclusive, then you need hundreds of corps all over the country like we had just prior to DCI (preferably thousands), and a governing organization dedicated to maintaining a level playing field and incentivizing greater participation, not greater enrichment to a few selected member corps. The single biggest obstacle to inclusivity is cost. That cost starts with the kid in Portsmouth, VA, not having a corps within 200 miles of home. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted March 31, 2022 Share Posted March 31, 2022 15 hours ago, Keith Hall said: It's the "Soup du jour" and although no one wants it to be political....it is because that's what the country is about today. The soup of the day will change. In education, every 10 years, someone comes out with something new and all the school districts rush out to get it. If change needs to be made in DC then Cavaliers need to open up to women! Now I am old school (started marching in the 1970's). Today the discussion is Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Safety. 10 years from now what will be the problem with DC? existence 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted March 31, 2022 Share Posted March 31, 2022 12 hours ago, skevinp said: So, the Cavaliers, then… it's been discussed in many circles. at this stage, it's probably only a matter of when Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TenHut Posted March 31, 2022 Share Posted March 31, 2022 Drum Corps is no better or worse than any industry. There are bad apples in all walks of life. We tend to think it's worse when it is our industry, but every industry has these issues. I never once saw abuse or racism when I marched and taught, but I realize that doesn't mean that it didn't occur. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted March 31, 2022 Share Posted March 31, 2022 (edited) 30 minutes ago, TenHut said: Drum Corps is no better or worse than any industry. There are bad apples in all walks of life. We tend to think it's worse when it is our industry, but every industry has these issues. I never once saw abuse or racism when I marched and taught, but I realize that doesn't mean that it didn't occur. And I see steps that are brushed off or insulted as “woke” ways to see if there is a problem and if there is, procedures to correct the issues. But that’s wrong for some reason. 🤷🏻 Edited March 31, 2022 by JimF-LowBari 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted March 31, 2022 Share Posted March 31, 2022 IMO where I worked, part of what made it more diverse was start of anti-sexual harassment policy. Is anyone willing to argue that is being “woke”? And I have no idea what “woke” means besides an insult without any explanation. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUARDLING Posted April 1, 2022 Share Posted April 1, 2022 6 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said: IMO where I worked, part of what made it more diverse was start of anti-sexual harassment policy. Is anyone willing to argue that is being “woke”? And I have no idea what “woke” means besides an insult without any explanation. It's an over used word that many ( especially on cable news ) that got a memo saying " Here's your new word minions , now work it into everything you say "...ughhhhh...lol 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted April 1, 2022 Share Posted April 1, 2022 13 minutes ago, GUARDLING said: It's an over used word that many ( especially on cable news ) that got a memo saying " Here's your new word minions , now work it into everything you say "...ughhhhh...lol And act like it is something new 🤮 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cixelsyd Posted April 1, 2022 Share Posted April 1, 2022 17 hours ago, JimF-LowBari said: IMO where I worked, part of what made it more diverse was start of anti-sexual harassment policy. Is anyone willing to argue that is being “woke”? And I have no idea what “woke” means besides an insult without any explanation. According to Wikipedia, whether "woke" is an insult or high praise depends on who is using the word. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimF-LowBari Posted April 1, 2022 Share Posted April 1, 2022 FYI: there is a thread on the All Age forum that has interviews with female leaders in DCA corps… Fits in with this thread IMO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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