AACC students learned about diversity in modern society through a monopoly-like game today in the Cade building.

“Factuality” is an interactive game used to portray how diversity affects real life.

The game leader assigned students characters with different ethnic backgrounds, economic classes and genders to simulate their everyday experiences.

Brandon Yenger, a second-year dance student, attended this event because of his Social Justice Communications class.

“I learned a lot of statistics about how they are treated in the medical field, prison and their prison experiences and overall inequality,” Yenger said.

Natalie Gillard, who received a Master’s degree from Lesley University in Race and Ethnic studies, gave a speech discussing diversity in society.

Gillard described her goal of the event as getting people to talk about diversity despite their sensitivity, in order to develop a better understanding of them.

“Everyone is capable of having difficult dialogue,” Gillard said.

Multiple students told Campus Current the game was “eye opening.”

Nyat Tsegai, a first-year criminal justice student, said she believes this event helps people understand life from another perspective.

“It’s really hard to get from bottom to top depending on … what race you are,” Tsegai said. “I had the richest guy, I had Bryan—he’s … Asian—so being Bryan I saw how I was always at the top no matter what I did and I kept on getting more and more money.”

“Bryan is the opposite of what I am I am a black female so being a rich Asian male put me in his shoes and it made me want to be him because I had all this money.”

“[It was] whole different perspective,” she said.

Gillard said she believes the event achieved her goal.

“There was a lot of laughter in the room and, to me, we are covering really serious issues but when you hear it coupled with the laughter it means that people are receiving the information and realizing that they are capable of actually having these types of conversations,” she said.