Black students at UC Berkeley held a silent protest “Blackout 2010” on March 1 amid a mounting climate of tension on University of California campuses throughout the state. Rows over tuition fee increases and recent student protests and vandalism have been making headlines.
But on Monday, about 200 students dressed in black stood for two hours blocking Sather Gate with mouths covered with black scarves in protest of what they say is an increasingly threatening academic environment for African American students.
The largely silent protest was in support of fellow students at UC San Diego, the site of three racially charged incidents. Most recently, a noose was found in the Geisel Library on Feb. 25. A police report called it “hanging a noose with intent to terrorize.”
The student who hung the noose in the library turned herself in to the police on Friday, and published an anonymous apology in the campus paper. She said she had not thought of the symbolism of the noose.
Earlier in February, a fraternity held a “Compton Cookout” themed party which mocked Black History Month with a series of negative stereotypes, then defended the party in a broadcast which used a racial slur.
“When I heard what happened at UCSD I was saddened. UCSD had to go that far to say how they view African Americans,” said UC Berkeley student Montoya Mayo, who was at the protest.
She said the stereotypes employed in the media and in the incidents in San Diego denigrated African-Americans and “put us in a box.” “Why don’t they show the good things? They never say good things that we do. It’s never talked about—always swept under the rug.”
Mayo, an American Studies major, said that achieving solidarity was a significant part of the protest. “Coming together to address the issues on campus—we’re low in numbers but when we come together we’re strong. We want to show that we’re peaceful, not violent.”
Only two percent of students at UCSD are black. The campus’s Black Students Union issued a six page letter calling for increased efforts to recruit African Americans, creating a safe place on campus, free tutoring, and making African American history a required course for graduation. They called the racial climate at their school an emergency.
University of California President Mark Yudof said on his Twitter page, “Entire UC community stands with African-American students at UCSD. As a parent I sympathize with their fears and deep personal hurt.”
But on Monday, about 200 students dressed in black stood for two hours blocking Sather Gate with mouths covered with black scarves in protest of what they say is an increasingly threatening academic environment for African American students.
The largely silent protest was in support of fellow students at UC San Diego, the site of three racially charged incidents. Most recently, a noose was found in the Geisel Library on Feb. 25. A police report called it “hanging a noose with intent to terrorize.”
The student who hung the noose in the library turned herself in to the police on Friday, and published an anonymous apology in the campus paper. She said she had not thought of the symbolism of the noose.
Earlier in February, a fraternity held a “Compton Cookout” themed party which mocked Black History Month with a series of negative stereotypes, then defended the party in a broadcast which used a racial slur.
“When I heard what happened at UCSD I was saddened. UCSD had to go that far to say how they view African Americans,” said UC Berkeley student Montoya Mayo, who was at the protest.
She said the stereotypes employed in the media and in the incidents in San Diego denigrated African-Americans and “put us in a box.” “Why don’t they show the good things? They never say good things that we do. It’s never talked about—always swept under the rug.”
Mayo, an American Studies major, said that achieving solidarity was a significant part of the protest. “Coming together to address the issues on campus—we’re low in numbers but when we come together we’re strong. We want to show that we’re peaceful, not violent.”
Only two percent of students at UCSD are black. The campus’s Black Students Union issued a six page letter calling for increased efforts to recruit African Americans, creating a safe place on campus, free tutoring, and making African American history a required course for graduation. They called the racial climate at their school an emergency.
University of California President Mark Yudof said on his Twitter page, “Entire UC community stands with African-American students at UCSD. As a parent I sympathize with their fears and deep personal hurt.”
