The ins and outs of Samo's Affinity Groups

Megan Suchet, Staff Writer

On Oct. 26, Samo had its first Affinity Group meeting, a newly established program to provide an outlet for students to share about their respective cultures and relate to the experiences of others. The groups are separated by ethnicity, amounting to six in total, including African-American/Black/African, Latinx/Hispanic/Indigenous, Arab/Middle Eastern/North African, White/Jewish/European, Asian/Pacific Islander/Southeast Asian and bi-/multi- racial. The initiative to institute the Affinity Groups came after a series of students spoke out anonymously through DearSamohi, an Instagram account created in late June to shed light on racism at Samo by sharing stories from black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC).

“Our goal is to build anti-racist groups within our school community that will generate tangibles that we can infuse into our school community and outcomes that make people feel safe, open and free to be themselves,” Principal Antonio Shelton said in a school email.

There have been two meetings this month, one on Nov. 9 and one on Nov. 16, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., during which students were called on to unmute and voice their thoughts. Teachers acted as moderators for the group they supervised, determined by the ethnicity they identify as. Math teacher Kelly Okla and ASB advisor Sarah Paulis, for example, ran the Arab group, making google slides with various questions such as “how do you define yourself?” Students also discussed the challenges they have faced in regards to their race, such as common stereotypes and hurtful generalizations. In this way, the meetings acted as a support group. Samo junior Cassidy Chen (’22), a member of the Asian Affinity Group, reflects on the nature of the meetings.

“I thought it was really interesting to kind of have a platform to express shared experiences and talk about how being Asian sort of perpetuates a lot of stereotypes and these kinds of expectations in school but also like acknowledging our own privilege too,” Chen said.

The Affinity Groups are fairly selective, with a limited number of students forming each one. The largest group was the Arab one, which only had about 15 participants. To sign up, use the link provided in the school email issued in October to access a form to fill out and submit if interested. The application is then reviewed, as completing the form does not guarantee participation.