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HOHCH 8-9. 2005
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§
ftE- IN “T HE ZONE.?
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON
T-T-T
Actress shares experiences
in overcoming adversity
Aloma Wright spoke at
the Black Women of
Achievement luncheon
BY MORIAH BALINGIT
NEWS REPORTER
Aloma Wright wears many hats. On
the popular hospital sitcom “Scrubs,”
she is Nurse Laverne Roberts. In the
movie “Mr. Deeds,” she was the stub
born tenant of a high-rise apartment
who refused to evacuate from a fire
without her seven cats. And in the film
“Brothers,” she played a racist mother
struggling with her son’s choices.
But on Saturday, she only wore
two hats. As the keynote speaker for
the Black Women of Achievement’s
“Empowerment Luncheon,” she
shared her experiences in overcom
ing the various forms of adversity
she faced throughout her life.
“If you can overcome obstacles,
you become a better person,” she
said in her address. The theme of the
event was “Overcoming Adversity.”
After the address, Wright put on
another hat: This one was wide
brimmed and straw, with a lavender
ribbon. The hat transformed her into
a dissatisfied housewife for the
monologue “Sunday Morning Mem
ories,” about a woman who skips
church to see Josh, her young, hot
adulterous accomplice.
Wright said the monologue was
for entertainment value, but it
nonetheless had a visible impact on
the audience.
The keynote address concluded a
two-hour program that drew about
30 people, including men and
women, to 100 Willamette. The
program also included a perform
ance by Erin O’Brien, director of the
ASUO Women’s Center, and presen
tations on the history of powerful
women of color.
University junior Brenda Sifuentez
and senior Candice Coots of Mujeres,
a sub-group of MEChA, spoke about
Dolores Huerta, the co-founder of the
United Farm Workers who managed
to raise 11 children alone while
working alongside Cesar Chavez to
gain more rights for laborers.
“She doesn’t get the recognition
Tim Bobosky | Photographer
Aloma Wright performs “Sunday Morning Memories” by Gus Edwards after her keynote
speech at the Black Women of Achievement’s “Empowerment Luncheon" on Saturday.
she deserves,” Sifuentez said. “But
she doesn’t ask for it either.”
O’Brien presented a short film and
performance piece for the program
and then spoke briefly about over
coming adversity.
“The challenge for me is that the ad
versity is not my identity,” she said in
an interview following the program.
“The adversity comes from racism and
sexism and homophobia.”
O’Brien said that once, when she
worked with high school students in
Los Angeles on social justice issues,
the director of the program outed her.
The students were not accepting.
“They said horrible things,” she
said. “It was probably one of the
most trying times in my life ... I
thought if I were straight, I wouldn’t
have to deal with this.”
In the end, however, she watched
at least one student change face.
“I was miserable,” she said. “But I
came out of it and I moved some
body and that was more important.”
Wright had her own stories to
share about overcoming adversity.
She had a child when she was 14
but still managed to graduate high
school and eventually earn a degree
in theater. She struggled with drugs,
depression and being a starving
artist without a steady paycheck.
Fresh out of theater school in New
York, she returned to Los Angeles to
find there was no work.
“I had a degree in theater and
there was no theater, so I turned to
drugs,” Wright said. She paused to
compose herself. “That made me
realize that we are human and we
will do things that we don’t think
we will do ... You become a differ
ent person with drugs.”
But Wright persevered, and she
said she’s now “just happy to be a
working actress.” She is currently
filming a movie in Atlanta, and she
will appear in 11 episodes of “Scrubs”
next season.
Senior Tameka Thompson said
Wright gave her confidence that she
could succeed, though her education
hasn’t taken a traditional path.
“For most people, having a child at
14 would stop them dead in their
tracks,” she said. “Wright showed me
there are people that succeed outside
the box. That’s something I’ll never
forget for the rest of my life.”
moriahbalingit@ dailyemercdd. com
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