The Center for American Indian Languages sends a message to the rest of the U about why culture and diversity are important.
The members at the center are attempting to salvage dying American Indian languages, but in saving the endangered languages, the center works to save the cultures that surround the languages as well.
For example, 75 percent of plant-based pharmaceuticals originated through cures known first by American Indians. Valuable knowledge such as this is lost when the language of the culture dies.
The first step toward expanding the information U students receive on the diverse traditions and societies that surround us is to fund programs that help us better understand culture.
As it is, the U population's insight into other cultures is limited, at best.
Most people at the U could probably name only one American Indian tribe in Utah-the Utes. How many could name the other six?
Students at the U should take full advantage of CAIL. They could learn something that will enrich them beyond their ephemeral academic life.
CAIL will help U students gain a true understanding of what American Indian cultures are really about and help dissolve the idea that American Indians are war-hungry, Mormon-killing, tomahawk-throwing people, as some people think even to this day.
It's unfortunate that CAIL didn't begin full-year operations before 2005.
It's also ironic that it took the College of Humanities to bring the program to the U, rather than the Center for Ethnic Student Affairs or the U's office of diversity.
One would think that a program dedicated to saving American Indian cultures would attract the attention of organizations dedicated to diversity more than it would a college.
What has the lack of concern cost the U community, not to mention the global community?
Lyle Campbell, director of CAIL, said many languages died because nobody cared for a long time.
One would think that CAIL would have received funding sooner because its significance is felt beyond the academic community.
Much of the grant money at the U goes toward programs that benefit the hard sciences, such as the medical and engineering schools, rather than the humanities.
Hopefully, our academic leaders and financers will realize the benefits of promoting programs such as CAIL, and will help prevent future loss of cultural knowledge.
