Speakers at a discussion Tuesday afternoon in Sloss House encouraged Iowa Staters to accept fellow students from other cultures.

“Very rarely do you find groups of international students and American students together,” said Jasmine Sampoornam, junior in pre-business.

The talks were led by Sangeeta Parashar, graduate student in English from India, who discussed many reasons for this cultural isolation.

Parashar said many international students she has talked with “feel their language and ability to communicate held them back.”

Parashar also said stereotypes by both Americans and international students inhibit communication.

In her work with children, Parashar said she has learned that Americans do not always have the correct perception of foreign cultures.

She said one child thought she rode to school on an elephant, and “another child asked if I was a cannibal and ate raw meat.”

Parashar said the media is the main reason for their ignorance.

“Images we get in the media only show the negatives,” she said. “International students carry those images with them.”

People from other countries can have negative perceptions of the United States and assume that all Americans are hypocrites without morals, Parashar said, adding that she has learned this is not usually true.

There was also discussion about the impact of multicultural events held by various organizations in the ISU community.

Most people at the meeting believed the events do not help spread awareness to students other than international students.

One student said few American students attend these events. Parashar said a lot of people feel cultural festivals “just perpetuate stereotypes” of international students.

One woman attributed the stereotypes to cultural nights that do not portray an accurate picture of current international cultures.

The construction of a multicultural center at ISU was also debated at the Tuesday meeting.

The general consensus of the audience was that one should be built, but at the same time, efforts should be made to involve both international and American students.

One participant suggested that if a center is built, the Study Abroad Center be placed in it to attract more American students.