A photograph of James Holmes, the suspect in the 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting, was accompanied by a striking quote.

"If I were Arab, I would be a terrorist. If I were black, I would be a thug. If I were white, I would be mentally ill."

This picture was shown at the beginning of the Embracing Diversity on Campus event at Southeast Missouri State University.

The event was at noon on Wednesday, Oct. 22, in the University Center's Indian Room.

The open forum and presentation was hosted by students Lisa Nolan and Justin Robinson. The opening picture was used to start a conversation about various stereotypes that ethnic groups face. In this case, the group talked about how different people are viewed after violent crimes.

According to his lawyers, Holmes was suffering from mental illness when he shot and killed 12 people and injured 70 others. In addition to the Aurora shooting, several other incidents were identified as being racially influenced.

"With the Trayvon Martin case," Jazmin Haey, student at Southeast, said, "they said Zimmerman killed him in self defense."

Nolan also talked about the unrest in the Middle East by saying that people are being led to believe that Arabs are terrorists. Another stereotype that was covered was the belief that Mexicans are illegal immigrants. In fact, a lot of people assume all Hispanics and Latinos are from Mexico and do not bother to differentiate.

"I'm Puerto Rican," Nolan said, "Yet back home, people ask me if I speak Mexican. What they don't realize is that I don't need a passport to be here as Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory."

Not even caucasian people are safe from stereotypes. The audience also discussed the view that whites are expected to be successful. Any white person who is not affluent, does not have a decent job or struggles to support themselves is "white trash."

"I know this one white woman who is the CEO of her company," Madonna Arnold, student at Southeast, said. "She always goes to work wearing designer clothes and has a fancy office and the loyalty of her employees. Yet every night, she goes home and she can't afford dinner. I asked why she wears designer clothes when she should be feeding herself and she said, 'It's what is expected of me.'"

The discussion also covered people of mixed race. They have been described as not looking like any race. They may be too light to be black, but too dark to be white.

"People talk to me and ask what I am," Haey said. "I didn't understand the question and they asked again. When I say that I am a mix of black, white and Asian, they always tell me I don't look Asian."

Nolan and Robinson also said that diversity is not limited to ethnicity. It also includes religion, age, socioeconomic status, gender, sexual orientation and many other factors.

"When I mention socioeconomic status, people tell me that's not diversity," Nolan said. "It seems as though now the only thing that matters to some people is whether you're black or white."

In terms of socioeconomic status, people look down on those who are dependent on welfare. If someone cannot afford to meet their needs, they are immediately condemned as lazy, unskilled moochers.

"I went back to school and now I have to use the welfare system to support myself and my children," Arnold said. "I have been a foster parent for a long time, but after I went back to school, I've been living off of food stamps. I was then told that I was no longer eligible to be a foster parent and the children I was raising were taken away from me."

Part of the problem appears to be that media tends to focus on conflict. When such incidents occur, they focus on the instigators instead of those who are trying to help. One such incident is the recent riots in Ferguson, Missouri. Nolan, a resident of Ferguson, noted that there was a lot of coverage of the looters, but little to no coverage of the cleanup effort.

"Every time the news came on, it was always looters this, looters that," Nolan said. "There were fraternities and sororities who helped rebuild the town and a few celebrities visited to help as well. The most attention they got was a picture or two that was shown for only a second or so."

Robinson said that another part of the problem is that people are now so worried about offending people, they are scared to talk about sensitive issues and get the truth themselves.

"People just aren't comfortable talking about such topics," Robinson said. "It seems as though we are walking on eggshells when it comes to conversations."

A survey was sent to all who attended through email after the event to recieve thoughts on the event. Based on the responces, it may raise the possibility that a similar event will occur in the future.