Dear Colleagues,
Copied below is a statement from WWU’s Black Student Organizations, and below that is a link to the entire document including short and long term demands.
Western students asked that I share this with faculty so that we can work to address problems here and now on our campus.
In light of the recent unprovoked murders of Black people in the United States, scores of universities have published statements reflecting their solidarity with the African diaspora as well as their institutional commitments to diversity. Western Washington University is no different in this regard. Western has agreed to open conversations, reach out to Black students and consider how it might support national change. What it has not done, however, is commit to real, tangible change that will significantly impact the lives of its current and future Black students. To be clear, Black Student Organizations are tired of being used as tokens, whose needs are only brought forth when there is a new hashtag trending. We have always expressed our needs explicitly, and yet it seems as though Western Washington University and the Associated Students only acknowledge our needs when saying “Black Lives Matter” is socially acceptable. Posting “Enough is Enough” on Western’s homepage, might seem to be an appropriate, politically correct response; however, it does nothing to address the very real concerns we have continually brought forth. Beyond issuing idle words, what lasting change is underway for Black students at our university? In the aftermath of multiple acts of anti-Black violence, will the university see its complicity in everyday racism and its lack of real change to support its Black students as less violent than those perpetrated by the police?
We are writing this statement to demand that you start with us first. Fix what has been broken for decades on this campus, before committing to stand with the nation and the world for racial justice. In the event our previously expressed needs have escaped your memory, we are including them in this document, along with additional demands to help the university move beyond lip service and into action. These demands are non-negotiable. We do not wish to be brought into endless meetings to help you figure out how to do this work. We expect the short term demands to be started immediately, and long term goals to follow directly thereafter.
Read more. Link to entire document.
Thank you for your consideration,
Jeff Young