On Thursday, Nov. 3, the UCA Health Science Club hosted an event on the Ronnie Williams Student Center lawn called “Slap Out Hate.”

CubConnect said the event’s purpose was “To increase awareness of diversity issues around the world, this educational event lets people ‘Slap Out’ the different types of hate and bias that exist in our society today.”

Participants in the event were asked to choose a paint color that matched a specific bias such as racism, sexism, ageism or gender bias. They were then instructed to slap their painted hand on a canvas to symbolically slap out that bias in our society. 

“I think that there are many ways in which people personally experience bias and discrimination. I think that this can be reduced by continually striving to educate ourselves and others on ways that bias and discrimination impact our communities,” junior Anna Weisenbach, president of the Health Science Club, said.

“At the end of the event, a giant canvas has been created that represents all the support UCA students, staff, faculty and administration has for anyone who has suffered from any bias or discrimination,” the CubConnect description said. 

The Health Science Club allows students to be involved within the department, network with other students and faculty and raise health awareness with activities on campus.

“The Health Science Club hosted this event to educate students on the bias that exists within our culture, and to demonstrate that these biases can be overcome. The event demonstrates the support that UCA students, faculty and staff have for anyone that has experienced bias or discrimination,” Weisenbach said.

“Slap out Hate” is an event that the club hosts annually because of its continuous success. 

“The event was very successful. We had many UCA students participate in the event, and even had some visiting high school students participate. This was a great event to connect with students of all majors and share information about biases,” Weisenbach said. 

The Health Science Club hosts other events throughout the year as well. They offer frequent health screenings in the Doyne Health Science building but have also hosted events similar to this one. 

These events have included handing out stress relief packets to students during finals week and other stress-free related events. 

The “Slap Out Hate” event is the club’s most popular event. 

“This event is one that we have been doing annually since it has such a strong impact on the campus community. It’s an original event created by Hannah Branton when she was the club president. People love to show their support for reducing bias and discrimination in all forms on our campus,” Weisenbach said.

The club’s next event, “Ask the Expert,” will be on Thursday, Nov. 10, during x-period and will cover binge drinking and how to prevent it.