Just before fall break, scores of students, staff and faculty members came out to the Union to support Call to Action’s silent protest of racist tweets made by “Pat Falcon.”
In the tweets, “Pat Falcon” wrote that he was a member of a campus organization and stated the student organization was a “separatist white hating group” that has a goal to kill white people.
After hearing about this absurd anon, I was relieved to find an opportunity in the protest to say racist ideologies are unacceptable.
The new student group Call to Action has been hosting meetings this month to involve students in brainstorming solutions for this problem on our campus because, contrary to what unfortunately seems to be popular belief, racism isn’t a thing of the past.
It hasn’t gone away in BG and it certainly hasn’t gone away in our country.
Recent racist exhibitions and tirades across the country include government shutdown protesters waving confederate flags outside the White House, Hollywood producer John Palermo (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) calling rapper Kanye West a racial slur, and Samuel Wurzelbacher, a.k.a. Joe the Plumber, publishing an article on his blog entitled “America Needs a White Republican President.”
These are just a few examples of racism caught by the media this week.
Think about how many others likely occurred.
Some students have expressed indifference to racism, asking why they should care.
Either they do not belong to a minority group and therefore have never felt threatened for simply being who they are, or they do not realize how serious hate speech or actions can be.
Hate speech and aggressive actions present possibilities of danger to members of minority groups. It incites violence and hostility against the groups it targets.
While many may think there is no more work to be done in this day and age to rid society of racism, they are sorely mistaken.
Call to Action’s next meeting is Monday, Oct. 28 at 10 p.m. on the second floor of the Union, above Starbucks.
If you can’t make it, consider supporting the cause another way, by asking members of the group what you can do to help.
It’s time we stop letting these incidents go by without much of a thought and take a stand.
