Group discusses racism
Contributing Writer
Students and faculty at the AWARE public forum are not going to tolerate racism anymore.
"We are not going to shut up and go away," sociology senior Kelly Meget said.
More than 70 students, faculty, and community residents met last night at the Alliance Working to Achieve Racial Equality meeting to discuss racism at UK.
Chancellor for the Lexington Campus Elisabeth Zinser, Dean of Students David Stockham and Vice President of Student Affairs James Kuder came tothe meeting listen to the concerns of the students.
Boyce Watkins, a mathematics graduate student served as facilitator.
He began the forum by recapping last week's alleged attack of Tanya-Marie Cole at Kastle Hall. Cole allegedly was attacked and threatened after expressing her opinion of an article written by Watkins in a letter to the editor in the Kentucky Kernel.
Many questions and concerns were raised toward UK's administration.
Many people were unhappy about the way Cole's attack was handled by the administration.
They think that because Cole is a black student, the situation wasn't given fair attention.
"If it had been a white female and two black males, we would still be talking about it," said Jocelyne Litou, an African-American Studies major.
"We all have feelings about being black and white," said assistant professor Nikky Finney.
"But it is all talk until we decide to get involved and change this."
Finney said that the racism problem at UK is "systemic, it is in the belly of the beast."
Students and faculty said they want to see an immediate change in UK's climate.
Some of the changes suggested by students were to have mandatory classes dealing with racism and increased public education.
"I would have rather taken a race or sexual awareness than some of the other requirements," said Jana Bowling, social work senior.
"The cross-cultural courses just don't cut it."
Other solutions included trying to keep professors who leave because they believe there is racism on campus and get rid of professors who are racist.
Students also asked the University administrators to support the minority students after they come to UK.
"You recruit the black students but then you don't support us," said Gerald Coleman, English and philosophy major.
Coleman said that the national average for University-sponsorship of their Black Student Unions is $35,000.
Coleman said UK's funding of a Black Student Union is much less, about $1,500 a year.
"This is everybody's problem," said UK graduate student Charmanine McKissick-Kemp. "It is at an individual level and it starts now."
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