Atlanta's March for Social Justice and Women

On January 21, about 20,000 people gathered in Atlanta for the monumental March for Social Justice and Women. One day after President Trump’s inauguration, the rally was in conjunction with the Women’s March in Washington, DC. Buses from Emory’s Clairmont campus took students to the starting point of the march at the Center for Civil and Human Rights to be part of the historical event, including first-year Jocelyn Stanfield. Jocelyn, who was a part of many Black Lives Matter protests in high school, went because “[she felt] strongly about supporting Women’s rights and the promotion of women’s health. [She is] also adamantly against Donald Trump so [she] went to protest the proposed defunding of Planned Parenthood.” The march was significant for those who felt that Trump’s presidency threatened their human rights. Speakers at the event included Congressman John Lewis, Staci Fox-President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Southeast and various government officials who understood that the rhetoric of the 2016 presidential election insulted, degraded and threatened the basis of American ideals for women, immigrants, Muslims, the LGBTQ community, Black and Brown people, and more. But, Jocelyn’s favorite part of the march was not the celebrity speeches. She found inspiration in all of her fellow marchers, young and old. “I saw a little African American girl holding up a “Still we Rise” sign which made me realize how impactful the march truly was to spread to even young children like that, it was truly extraordinary. I think that gave me a sense of purpose, it told me that what I was participating in would be important for future generations to come.” 

Courtesy of Jocelyn Stanfield

Courtesy of Jocelyn Stanfield

The march was about the future and the question of “what’s next?” Participants were concerned with how to move forward in the face of the reality that their country’s president does not support the vibrant and diverse communities they are a part of. The main response Jocelyn found to the above concern is to speak up when you are upset about something. She believes that “there is a danger in complacency and a lot of Americans seem content with watching this country unravel which is how horrible things can begin.” No one should be afraid to speak up because it is a right promised in our Constitution. There are social and political responsibilities placed upon everyone in light of our new President. We, as Black college students, should be involved in political activism in order for us to gain and maintain the right to human dignity that history tries to block us from. After marching to the State Capitol, Jocelyn agrees with the above sentiment by saying, “I personally think they [Black college students] should; it would not be right to just watch history go by without attempting to be a part of it. As Black students who have gone through all kinds of racial prejudice, it should fall upon us to help others who might be going through the same injustice. I do understand that many students do not feel comfortable speaking out, or may not realize the significance of their words, but any help to the cause can go a long way and I hope people will recognize that.”

Courstesy of Jocelyn Stanfield

Courstesy of Jocelyn Stanfield

At the end of the day, speaking out and standing up happens in all different ways and no way is better than next because action of any kind is productive. But, the question is what will your way be? 


By: Imani Brooks, Staff Writer

Statement about Trump Events by Black and Brown Emory University Students

We, the Black and Brown students at Emory, stand firmly against the intimidation, lies, and deeply rooted racism that people of color continue to face--on our campus, nationwide, and globally. #1969not1836 #BlackBrownAndHere

On Monday, March 21st, 2016, students on Emory University’s campus were met with an overwhelming number of pro-Donald Trump messages, which were chalked onto buildings, walkways, brick and concrete around campus.  The messages included, but were not limited to: “Vote Trump 2016”, “Build a Wall”, and “Accept the Inevitable Trump 2016.”  Prior to the Georgia Primaries, posters and chalkings also appeared on campus in favor of various candidates including Donald Trump.  However, in this situation, permission was granted from the University, and posters were placed in an observant manner.  On the 21st of March, the intense presence of pro-Trump statements and/or rhetoric could be seen in every direction students walked. Most notably, in the Dobbs University Center--where the Black Student Union, Centro Latino, and main dining hall are located--the phrase “Vote Trump 2016” was deliberately placed on 58 steps.  This means, Black and Brown students saw these messages on their way to class, meals, and their places of fellowship.

Trump’s messages of division (racist, xenophobic, homophobic, ableist, and sexist) make reference to a non-post racial state. Fellow students’ complacency with the narratives of Donald Trump and the aggressive condemnation of Black and Brown students’ responses reflects a lack of concern for the very real consequences of his campaign policies.

During the protest, students were invited into the Administration building by Elizabeth Cox, and met with President Wagner to voice their concerns and discuss other matters of importance, such as the university’s slow progress on the Black Students’ list of demand and the limited support for undocumented students. Following this demonstration, several students of color once again took to social media to voice their concerns over the university’s lack of acknowledgement of the incident. Many of these students were later subjected to a series of targeted attacks via social media including death threats.

Subsequent media reports have tried to frame this case as one about “coddled” and “oversensitive” students; however,

LET US BE CLEARWe are not scared of the chalk. We are not mad about being politically challenged. We are rightfully angry because we also exercise our first amendment right to freedom of speech and there are people on this campus, and in this country, who as a result choose to threaten us and twist the truth to protect their own bigotry.

Firstly, we are not asking that these students censor their politics, nor are we asking that administration chooses to intervene in student politics. Rather, what we are asking for is equality and equity -- we want a streamlined, consistent method of communication to deal with instances of unrest on Emory's campus. This means race, color and economic status should not determine whether or not the University needs to be prompted to send out a response of acknowledgement of events. Secondly, we ask the Emory University Student Body and individuals nationally to fight for our right of freedom of speech the way they have for Trump supporters.

Black and Brown people and student activists around the world remain in danger and under siege, by their classmates, universities, and governments. We only need to look to Mizzou and University of Cape Town, among others in the recent past, and now the University of Hyderabad in India, where student protesters for Dalit rights have been unjustly arrested, assaulted by police, and denied access to food, drinking water, and Internet.

Emory claims to be an institution that cares about its students and that fosters a sense of diversity, inclusion, and a community of care on campus. It claims to be engaged with issues on a global scale. Yet, since 1969 when the first Black student demands were issued, we have seen Emory administration fail time and time again to fulfill its promises to students of color. While people are writing endless renditions of the same article about how we are afraid and cowards, we continue to sacrifice our student experience. What we are advocating for is accountability on behalf of Emory University, the rights of students to protest for change without putting their safety at risk, and a recognition of the daily physical and emotional assaults on Black and Brown people worldwide.

-The Black and Brown Students of Emory University

Harvard Law Professor, An Emory Movement

Distinguished Harvard Law Professor and former legal advisor of O.J. Simpson, Dr. Alan Dershowitz, had a conversation with me this week pertaining to the growing student movements spreading across the nation. Though he told Business Insider that the protesters were “tyrannical” and wanted a “superficial diversity”, one based on the numbers game; he provided me with encouraging words for a possible alternative moment at Emory. He believes that protesters are more concerned about securing “more” of their demographic on campus and receiving entitlements than creating an inclusive environment on campus.

He is obviously very conservative about this issue and does not see why it may be necessary for universities and colleges to specifically aid students of color, but Dr. Dershowitz and I did agree on something. I posed to Dr. Dershowitz: If these movements are superficial, how would movements targeting Eurocentricism in the curriculum sound to you as a scholar? “I want to lead a substantive movement against Eurocentricism here at Emory,” I told him. 

“If the contributions of other cultures to science, literature and other academic subjects warrant inclusion they should certainly be studied,” he replied. This is a breath of fresh air coming from a world-renowned legal scholar given that he is a liberal professor, but totally against the current movements. This is evidence that even left-wing thinkers can be absolutely conservative about certain demands of the protesters, but a lot more accepting of other demands even though they get at the same point— inclusivity. I personally don’t think that movements calling for more ambitious measures should cease their activities by any means, but this does not mean that more moderate movements should not also get to action. That way, we can battle the same enemy on more than one front. In Alabama, we say it’s easier to kill a bee with honey than vinegar, but that doesn’t mean you can’t try both and avoid respectability politics at the same time.

Malcolm X often proclaimed, “As a man thinketh, so shall he do.” Education bares a significant weight on a person’s thought process and a vast majority of people do and say atrocious things because they[   are quite simply— ignorant. Students of color expect their peers to see every human being’s self-worth and value to society. It is obvious that they’re not learning that in our classrooms and neither are most students of color, especially in high school. History textbooks generally reduce Africans’ significance and role in the world to slavery, and our only contributions to modern science, as told by the modern academy, came in the form of Henrietta Lacks’ stolen cancer cells. Yet, college students of every ethnicity around the nation were shouting, “All I want for my birthday is a big booty hoe,” in fall 2012. This is an American tragedy.

In a 1968, Emory’s Fraternity Study Committee cited a Yale professor and educational philosopher named Robert Hutchinson. According to Hutchinson, the liberal arts education “frees a man from the prisonhouse of his class, race, time, place, background, family, and even his nation, for the purpose of understanding and taking part in the great task of becoming human and forming a world community.” As of now at Emory, these are just empty words. But with discipline and consistency, we can give them meaning. 


#AllLivesMatter Advocates Strangely Quiet After Paris Attack

On Friday evening November 13th, 2015, the city of Paris was attacked by a series of terror attacks consisting of mass shootings, suicide bombings, and hostage-takings. An estimated 129 victims were killed, 89 of which were at the Bataclan theatre. An additional 415 people were admitted to hospitals with injuries sustained in the attacks, including 80 people described as being seriously injured. These attacks were the deadliest in France’s history since the Second World War. In response, the French President François Hollande announced a state of emergency, and placed temporary controls on the country's borders. People and organizations from around the world expressed solidarity through social media.

In the hours after the attack, some Parisians used social media, in particular the Twitter hashtag #PorteOuverte, which is French for "#OpenDoor", to offer overnight shelter to strangers stranded by the attacks. The hashtag trended worldwide. Many online companies like Amazon, YouTube, Google, Facebook, Twitter and many other social media firms have raised or put up a French flag in a mark of respect showing solidarity. Many sites have also enabled users to easily add a French flag over their profile pictures to show solidarity, and many users have chosen to do so. Following the attacks, multiple landmark structures around the world were lit in the colors of the French flag. There was also an issuing of condemnation from more than 117 Heads of State and a strong statement from the U.N’s secretary-General.

Now as comforting and positive as all of this support for Paris has been, it raises an important question. Not to diminish the tragedy that Paris has suffered but this level of cruelty and violence has happened to many other countries throughout the year with little to no coverage. Just two days prior, there was a pair of suicide bombers who detonated explosives in Beirut, Lebanon and killed up to 43 people and injured 200-240 people. It received almost no international media coverage and was condemned by only 8 countries. On Oct. 31st, a Russian airliner crashed in North Sinai, Egypt with 217 passengers and 7 crew members. There were zero survivors and investigators concluded with 90% certainty that a bomb caused the crash. ISIS/ISIL later claimed credit for both attacks.

Why is it that in a year that witnessed over 280 terrorist attacks taking place all over the world we put the spotlight on Paris? Why is it that when Boko Haram militants opened fire on Nigerian villages and killed or displaced over 2000+ people, international media not only ignored it but also claimed it didn’t occur? Why is it that when a European country is attacked by terrorism, the whole world stands in solidarity but when an African country or a Middle Eastern country is attacked then it is considered normal? Why is it that whenever there is a mass shooting or an explosion, it is only considered an act of terrorism if the suspects are Muslim? Why is it that Dylan Roof wasn’t considered a terrorist? Why is it that a person who is connected to a White Supremacy group is called a lone wolf, but a Muslim terrorist who acts alone must be part of some convoluted conspiracy to bring down the government?

Luckily, there is national movement within the United States, which prides itself on making sure every life is treated equally. #AllLivesMatter advocates are always the first ones to claim that we shouldn’t speculate when a police officer kills an unarmed Black teen, we should wait for the evidence. We’re sure they took the same rational approach when Paris was attacked with suicide bombers and mass shootings. We’re sure CNN didn’t change their font size to 48 black bold to claim it was radical Islamic terrorists before they were able to verify their sources. We’re sure that while condemning the actions of the terrorists, they also highlighted the role of European powers interfering in the Middle East, which causes the conditions that lead to radicalism. The same way they supported the police officers with GoFundMe pages and unconditional support. We are so sure that the same people who were foaming at the mouth when we marched for the rights of Black lives to exist, who were quick to stress that every life matters, they would surely point out the flaw in coverage. However, we were sadly disappointed to learn that #AllLivesMatter did none of the above.

It begs the question, why does #AllLivesMatters exist if not to advocate for the value of all lives? The simple answer must be that it was only meant as a response to #BlackLivesMatter in order to minimize the concerns of the Black community by perpetuating the myth that we live in a post-racial society. There were no calls for prayer at the deaths of Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice and the countless other unarmed black teens who lost their lives at the hands of police in 2015. There were no calls for solidarity when SAE members from University of Oklahoma sang about lynching Black people. There were no calls for bringing down the flag of the confederacy, which stood as a symbol for the right to maintain slavery, from the Statehouse in South Carolina until 9 African-Americans were murdered. The message is plain and clear. The world doesn’t value the lives of Black people or any group of people who don’t come from European ancestry. The glacier speed of progress that we have accomplished up until now was only a mirage in a desert of white supremacy. The Black community must be unified, now more than ever, in order to finally reach the oasis of the Promised Land.  

The disparity in media coverage, international response, and plain apathy towards terroristic violence in nonwestern countries will only further alienate the people of Middle-eastern citizenship and African citizenship from those of the United States and Europe. These feelings of animosity and the existence of Eurocentrism are the exact conditions that favor the formation of radical political groups who use religion to brainwash people into killing innocent civilians. Unless we are willing to show the same level of support the next time a Middle Eastern or African country is attacked, this aggrandizing of the Paris incident will only further divide the global community and infuriate a large portion of it.

On Sunday, November 15th, Paris began to bomb the Syrian city of Raqqa as retaliation for the terrorist attacks. While France has conducted airstrikes on the region in the past, it was always wearily of doing urban areas for the fear of unintended casualties. However, after Friday’s incident, a stronger reaction was urged by the government. The targeted areas include clinics, a museum, and other buildings. While we hope they have solid intelligence to lead on and they get the individuals responsible for the violence, we hope the rest of the world is also praying for the safety of the innocent civilians in Syria. We hope the Black community remains resolved to continue the long road to justice. We hope the value of all lives will truly matter and that we don’t use that phrase to simply marginalize a group. We hope to live in a world where people can practice their faith in peace and love without being attacked or having their religion misconstrued. Lastly, we hope to live in a world where people can use their misplaced anger to better the world for the common man and truly embrace their identity. 

Abdella Abdushukur, Contributing Writer 

Spring Valley

On Monday, a South Carolina police officer, Ben Fields, brutally dragged a 16 year-old Spring Valley High School student from her chair. His reasoning? Well, apparently the girl refused to leave the classroom. The victim, of course, was black. In the video that has gone viral, you can see the police officer grab the girl.  He flips her and the desk over, and then pulls her across the classroom.

Ben Fields has been fired. However, there is controversy surrounding that decision. Some of the students staged a protest, wearing shirts that say “Free Fields”.  Most students agree that he made a mistake, but they are not sure that Fields deserved to be fired for it.  Some of the students also think that Fields’ aggressive conduct wasn’t racially-driven.

While the assault against the girl is disturbing, for me, it is not the most disturbing part. The worst part of the video is the silence—the silence from the other students, and the silence from the teacher.  You can tell from the body language of the other people in the classroom that they feel powerless. They witness what is happening to their classmate, to their friend, and they know that they have to let it go on. If one of them stood up to the officer, what would happen? If a student tried to help, that student might very well end up injured, arrested, or maybe even dead.

The fact that black people have been reduced to a state of uselessness is disheartening.  From a young age, black children have to witness violence from figures that are supposed to protect them. The girl who was assaulted didn’t do anything wrong. She was sitting peacefully in her chair. She did not have a weapon or drugs. She did not hurt anyone. There was no reason for her to be dragged across the classroom. But in this situation (just like many others), being black was reason enough.


Maya Valderrama, Staff Writer 

New Faces, Same Spaces

“I am not in a position to be comfortable,” says Ian McCall, a 2013 graduate of the College, reflecting on his time at Emory University.  McCall arrived on campus driven towards the sole purpose of obtaining a college degree. As a non-traditional student and a former sergeant of the U.S. Marine Corps, he set foot on campus with a unique set of life experiences, and a love for learning. But within his first semester, he realized that his life as an Emory student could never just center on the classroom. As a Black student at a predominantly white institution, McCall could not ignore the racial insensitivity he continually witnessed on campus. McCall’s story is not unique.

 Black students at Emory founded the Black Student Alliance House in 1986 to “maintain Black identity and cohesiveness on the Emory University campus, promote recognition of a conscious African American culture and heritage, [and] serve as a place for the study and evaluation of Black ideals and goals.” To Ayanna Ingraham (12C), the house was a “safe space.” To Dorothy Bota (13SPH), it evoked a “sense of belonging.” To Sophia Hines (12C), the house provided a “home away from home.” In December 2011, after 25 years of existence, Emory’s administration closed the BSA House. It now sits vacant, the sign displaying “Black Student Alliance House” still intact.

 There are several accounts of what led to the closing of the BSA House – from students, Residence Life and Housing, and various Emory administrators. All we can say with certainty is that Black students lost a space on Emory’s campus and the elimination of the BSA House precluded a series of events that proved antithetical to the need for space and safety, and the humanity of Black students.

 In September 2012, Dean Robin Forman announced the closing of the Journalism, Educational Studies, Physical Education, and Visual Arts Departments, as well the discontinuing of graduate programs in Spanish, Economics, and the Institute of Liberal Arts. The cuts disproportionately affected faculty and graduate students of color.

 As the nation waited for the Supreme Court to issue a decision on the constitutionality of affirmative action policies, The Dooley Show,  a satirical Emory news outlet, called for the “lynching, tarring and feathering, and cross burning” of those students who allegedly benefitted from affirmative action.

 In February 2013, President James Wagner wrote a column titled, “As American as…Compromise,” for the winter edition of the Emory Magazine. He drew parallels between a compromise that reduced each enslaved Black individual  to three-fifths of a person for the sake of the U.S. Constitution and the decision-making process for the department cuts.

 Emory made local and national headlines as the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Salon, New York Times, National Public Radio, and several other news outlets reported on these incidents while students and faculty across the university expressed their outrage.

 Certainly, these were contentious times; but students had been weary of and frustrated by conditions on Emory’s campus long before the department cuts or the president’s insensitive remarks. In December 2012, an ad-hoc committee comprised of 11 students and 7 faculty and Division of Campus Life staff gathered to “explore issues of race, gender, privilege, sexual violence, and oppression” in order to “create an inclusive, equitable, and just environment” on Emory’s campus. In March 2013, the committee issued its report, “The Campus Life Compact for Building an Inclusive Community at Emory.” After months of discussion and feedback from the Emory community, the student-led committee made several tangible recommendations to the university. Some of those suggestions included: student organization and Office of Student Leadership and Service (OSLS) advising partnerships; Sexual Assault Peer Advocates (SAPA) expansion; and a bias incident reporting system.

 Another recommendation included a reexamination of space needs on Emory’s campus, particularly for the support and affirmation of underrepresented student groups. On August 30, 2013, the space that was once the DUC Down Under re-opened as the Emory Black Student Union, a space open to all students and one that is dedicated to Black communities on Emory’s campus.

 And just recently, Residence Life and Housing awarded the BSA themed housing in the former Chi Phi Fraternity house.

Over the last four years, Black students have fought to reclaim space for themselves on Emory’s campus. To many, the new BSA House represents a victory. It’s not an absolute solution to the problems Black Emory students face in their daily lives, but it’s a start.


Erica Sterling ('15C), Contributing Writer

Editor's Note: Quotes by Ian McCall, Ayanna Ingraham, Sophia Hines, and Dorothy Bota were gathered from the oral histories that Navosha Copeland ('16C) collected from Black Emory alumni in the Spring of 2015 as a part of the Legacy Campaign, which was sponsored by the Emory Black Student Union (EBSU) and initiated by Candace Pressley ('16C).