Penn State students sit-in against
campus racism
■ ueam inreats ana two dead
bodies led student leaders
to demand policy changes
By Beata Mostafavi
Oregon Daily Emerald
After displays of racism plagued
Pennsylvania State University last
week, hundreds of Penn State stu
dents demanded action from their ad
ministration. And while that was tak
ing place, University of Oregon
students and faculty took the oppor
tunity to examine the safety of their
own campus environment.
Hate issues are not new to Penn
State. In October, .threatening letters
were sent to three black students and
one university official, which ignited
fiery discussions on campus. But it
was three recent and separate inci
dents that spurred fear and attention
among members of the Penn State
campus community within the last
few weeks, leading to a week-long
student sit-in at the university.
On April 20, the president of the
Black Caucus student group was sent
a death threat which also hinted at a
bomb threat on graduation day. The
threat was first received by a reporter
at Penn State’s campus newspaper,
the Daily Collegian.
Three days after the letter was re
' ceived, on April 24, the body of a
black male was found in Camptown,
Pa., more than 100 miles away from
v campus. The man died from multiple
gun shot wounds.
And on April 27, the body of an
unidentified 38-year-old black male
was found about 20 miles away from
the Penn State campus. The cause of
death was a gunshot wound. As of
April 30, the Pennsylvania State Po
lice had declared no links between
the hate-mail incident and the appar
ent homicides, according to the Penn
State administration.
Although the occurrences have
elicited the most response within the
Penn State community, an e-mail cir
culating about the recent threats has
meant news of the incidents has also
reached the attention of University of
Oregon students and faculty.
It should not take these kind of inci
dents to raise awareness of diversity
priorities, ASUO President Jay Bres
low said. He said the University com
munity tends to have a false sense of
security that hate crimes do not hap
pen here.
Although the University of Oregon
administration has made some efforts
to enforce diversity goals such as hold
ing workshops to help faculty mem
bers better incorporate diversity in the
classroom, he said, it is not enough.
“I think our campus wouldn’t have
a clue as to how to handle something
like that,” he said of the Penn State hate
incidents. “We need to stop being re
active and start being more proactive.”
Chicora Martin, director of the Uni
versity Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans
gender Educational and Support Ser
vices, said the administration has
made some proactive steps. She men
tioned the Bias Response Team, a
group of students and staff that work
to bring proper responses to discrimi
nation incidents, as a good step. She
said the team has already handled a
few situations this year where stu
dents felt they were the target of dis
crimination.
Martin also noted that a four-page
survey was recently sent to a random
sample of 5,500 students to examine
how diversity is viewed on campus.
Martin said results from the survey
— which she said she hopes will re
veal the minority voice—would give
the administration a better idea of
what new diversity programs should
be implemented or existing ones
should be modified.
But Martin said more could be done.
She said increasing efforts to recruit
and retain faculty and students of color
is one step. She added the administra
tion is learning that diversity is an is
sue that has to be consistently revisited.
“We can’t change overnight,” she
said. “But we have to be dedicated to
educate students to go out in to a
world that is not homogeneous. ”
Dominique Beaumonte, the direc
tor of die Black Student Union, said
tlie administration needs to take a
more active role in diversity plans and
not leave all the work solely in the
hands of offices like the Office of Mul
ticultural Affairs and the Multicultural
Center. He added that the average stu
dent also needs to get more involved
with diversity initiatives, not just
those students in leadership positions.
The recent sit-in at Penn State,
which led to a few student arrests,
was intended to elicit a response from
the university’s president, Graham
Spanier. The sit-in took place April
25, and the university administration
responded the next day with a pro
posal that aims to strengthen diversity
objectives at the school.
But students demanded revisions,
and a few changes were made before
students and the administration final
ly reached an agreement Thursday.
A few key highlights of the proposal
include investing $900,000 into a new
Africana Studies Research Center, a
commitment to provide $350,000
worth of scholarships to African
African American Studies majors and
changes to the curriculum over the
next five years.
Kisha Wilson, secretary of the Penn
State Black Caucus, said the adminis
tration’s lack of support was one of the
student concerns during the sit-in. Al
though members of the administra
tion wrote the proposal, students
raised the issues first and made sug
gestions throughout the year, she said.
She added that although the pro
posal addressed many student con
cerns, not everyone was completely
content.
“I think student groups are some
what satisfied,” she said. “But not 100
percent of students. There are still
some things that haven’t been met.”
Wilson Ifdded that if nothing else,
the response and reaction to the inci
dents has shown the campus that
racism will not be tolerated while also
raising awareness on other campuses.
“These aren’t isolated issues,” she
said. “Thishappens everywhere.”
Penn State University spokesman
Tysen Kendig said Penn State’s prior
ity in the last couple of weeks has
been security for the students. But he
said there’s a limit to being ready for
such events.
“We’ll do everything in our power
to provide for the safety and protec
tion of our students,” he said. “We’re
taking these threats very seriously....
It’s no secret that racism is still a prob
lem that plagues society as a whole. ”
The Penn State administration has
worked to provide around-the-clock
security for students who feel threat
ened, and it also plans to enhance se
curity measures at the Penn State grad
uation ceremonies May 12 and 13.
Dr. Tom Poole, associate vice
provost for educational equity at Penn
State, said university campuses need
to consistently work toward diversity
goals.
“I don’t think you can even let your
guard down on these things,” he said.
“We’re on the right track, but this is a
never-ending process.”
Penn State Hate Incident Timeline
Early Oct.: Members of Penn State’s
black community, including three stu
dents and one university official, re
ceive threatening letters.
Oct. 19: Penn State President Graham
Spanier establishes a special fund pro
viding reward money for information
leading to the arrest and conviction of
people threatening members of the
university community.
Nov. 13: Penn State launches new ini
tiatives to combat racism. These in
clude a series of advertisements,
posters and videos on the value of di
versity, and are developed with stu
dent leaders.
April 20: A reporter from the Penn
State campus newspaper receives a
letter threatening the life of the presi
dent of the Black Caucus and alludes
to a bomb threat at graduation.
April 24: Pennsylvania State Police
find the body of a black male in
Camptown, Pa., more than 100 miles
away from the Penn State campus.
April 25: Penn State students conduct a
sit-in to elicit a response from Spanier.
April 26: The administration makes a
proposal to meet the diversity objec
tives students demand.
April 27: The body of an unidentified
38-year-old black male is found about
20 miles away from the Penn State
campus. Police could prove no links be
tween the hate letter and the deaths.
May 3: The administration and stu
dents reach an agreement that in
cludes investing $900,000 into a new
Africana Studies Research Center, a
commitment to provide $350,000
worth of scholarships to African
African American Studies majors, and
changes to the curriculum.
Source: Pennsylvania State University
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