Lurie was invited to the meeting but said he could not attend due to short notice.
“People who would most benefit from this discussion weren’t here,” Angela A. Amos ’05 said after the meeting. “Jason Lurie and his type [who are] most antagonistic toward these groups don’t actively try to engage in these forums.”
Michael J. Arth ’08 said after the meeting that he believed few people on this campus would agree with Lurie’s stance, calling his argument a “largely indefensible opinion.”
“Is there something inherently wrong about an organization that exists as a haven for its own community members?” one student asked at the beginning of the discussion.
Participants also expressed hope that the forum created by Wednesday’s discussion will lead to follow-up action from the various organizations.
“At the end of the meeting people were smiling,” Adjah said. “People are ready to do something.”
“This could be a great starting point for a good interracial dialogue,” Liu said.
—Staff writer Victoria Kim can be reached at vkim@fas.harvard.edu.