UVa Strikes Back After Wave of Hate

For undergrads at the University of Virginia (UVa), the first week of school was supposed to be defined by the hassles of moving in, the joy of seeing friends again, and the fun of parties without having to worry about schoolwork. Instead, for students returning to Virginia’s flagship campus in Charlottesville, Va., that week—and several weeks afterward—will be remembered for the string of ugly incidents of racial harassment and intimidation that jolted the school and prompted a public response from the university president.

Passing motorists yelled racial slurs at students. A black student named Phillip Jackson found the words “Nigger/I hate Jesus” written on the whiteboard on his room door, according to the university newspaper, the Cavalier Daily. And the Washington Post reported that a black student, sophomore Kyle Miller, found a racist note written in red capital letters on the windshield of his vehicle.

Five racial incidents were reported to officials in the span of only three days during the week of Aug. 22, and at least nine separate incidents were documented in the first few weeks of school.

On Sept. 16, UVa President John T. Casteen III gave a rare speech from the steps of the Rotunda condemning the racially motivated attacks and urging students to report any future incidents immediately. The university also distributed black ribbons for students, faculty, and staff to wear as a sign of support for the victims.

The incidents have since stopped, but they have reawakened concerns about racial discrimination. The university continues to implement measures to promote diversity and fight bigotry that had been recommended after prior incidents, but some students and staff say the university must do more.

THE STUDENT REACTION

The spike in intolerance sparked a quick response from members of the student body. In the wake of the first few incidents, a group of students gathered in a show of solidarity and protest at the picturesque Rotunda—the white-columned cylindrical building that sits at one end of the campus main grounds and is a widely recognized symbol of the university—according to university spokeswoman Carol S. Wood.

Students also began wearing black t-shirts, which was an idea that came from the black community, says Aaron N. Blake, the president of the university’s Black Student Alliance (BSA).

A few weeks later, black ribbons started appearing tied around columns in the central grounds—known to students as the Lawn—Blake says.

The BSA hosted a town meeting to allow incoming freshmen to air out their concerns and discuss the issue with upperclassmen and administration, Blake says, where older students shared with their experiences with prejudice.

Early in September, in reaction to the incidents, students formed groups to escort and patrol the campus during the night.

“I think on the grassroots level, the university’s response has been impeccable,” says UVa junior Sina Kian. “Students have risen up against it.”

And on Sept. 18, parents from Northern Virginia and other areas met with Casteen to voice their concerns, according to the Washington Post.

THE UNIVERSITY REACTS TOO

President Casteen’s very public response in front of the Rotunda surprised some at the school and attracted the attention of national media. Students say that in the past, Casteen often communicated by e-mail after racist incidents.

Casteen also sent a letter to faculty on Sept. 20 that asked them to speak to students and take a stand against the acts of intolerance.

“Specifically, I ask teaching faculty to make a brief personal statement at the next meeting of each of your courses about your view of the unacceptability of racial harassment or abuse, indeed of any kind of harassment or abuse, within the University community,” Casteen wrote.

The administration’s response has been unusually open on an issue that some at the university characterized as a persistent problem.

“It’s always been going on, a couple incidents a year, with people abused or injured,” says Keith R. Favreau, who is a junior at UVa.

Two past incidents have attracted significant attention. In October 2002, three people attended a fraternity party with their faces painted black, provoking a university investigation, the Cavalier Daily reported. Then, on Feb. 26, 2003, Student Council presidential candidate Daisy Lundy, who is black, had her head slammed against the steering wheel of her car while her attacker shouted a racial epithet, according to the Daily. In response to the incidents, the university created a commission to investigate issues of race and college and community life in September 2003, Wood says. The Commission on Diversity and Equity issued a report in 2004 and its recommendations are posted on the university’s website.

As a result of the commission’s work, William B. Harvey, the president of the Center for Advancement of Racial and Ethnic Equity at the American Council on Education, was appointed the first vice president and chief officer for diversity and equity on Sept. 13—after the series of incidents but before Casteen’s Rotunda speech.

“This is not something new just in reaction to” the new incidents, Wood says. “It is a very strong commitment to diversity and equity—it is a very public commitment.”

Neither of the past events prompted a response as public as this time.

“I’ve talked to some old alumni, and they were astonished” with the administration’s reaction, says Drew Austria, the president of the Asian Student Union at UVa. In particular, Austria says they were particularly impressed by Casteen’s Rotunda speech.

The high volume of racist incidents occurring within such a short time period made it difficult for the administration not to speak out, says M. Rick Turner, the UVa dean African-American Affairs.

“One or two issues can be talked about and handled,” he says. “If you get five or six, and you get pressure from your administration and your students and [the governing board] and from alums, you’re going to respond.”

“The president and [the board] felt it was important to be very public—and we already were very public—but to get out there and stand on the steps of the Rotunda, and let everyone know how despicable these acts are and we don’t tolerate them in our community,” says UVa spokeswoman Wood.

“The more vocal and public we are, we let the perpetrators know that they are the ones who don’t belong in our community,” she added.

PRAISE—BUT HOPE FOR MORE

On the whole, students and staff lauded the administration for not downplaying the racist incidents and confronting the intolerance instead.

“We’re actually one of the few institutions that is responding to racism,” says Kian.

But some thought that Casteen did not respond fast enough.

“Casteen had to receive pressure from different groups to make a response,” BSA President Blake says.

Blake also says that she hoped the university’s efforts to fight prejudice would not end with the black ribbons.

But she added, “It is an essential step to raise awareness.”

And almost all of the students and administration officials interviewed by The Crimson say that heightened awareness and discussion about race is an essential part of fighting bigotry.

Favreau, though, says he worried that focusing too much attention on the recent series of incidents might prove counterproductive.

“A lot of people I’ve talked to feel it is a good message to get out, but by promoting it you are publicizing it and giving the perpetrator the publicity he wants,” he says.

Both Favreau and Kian say that most students do not think the racist attacks were the work of anyone at UVa.

And students were quick to defend the university, which has drawn criticism lately for being a racist Southern institution in light of the incidents.

“It’s not a problem with the school, but with the few who are committing these acts,” Austria says. “It’s not that the university is racist.”

POSSIBLE REFORMS

The university requires freshmen to attend a diversity program entitled “Different Voices, Common Threads” during orientation, Blake says. The program consists of a series of skits and cultural events that address the history of integration and discrimination not only concerning minorities but concerning homosexuals as well.

“They tried to make us more aware of how self-segregating our school is,” says UVa sophomore Emily A. Keith.

Blake says that despite the classes, sometimes the administration does not run the school enough and that leads to issues about racism falling by the wayside.

“One of my main issues with this university is it’s always been hands-off,” Blake says. The students “are the government of the school, we’re not going to do anything, you control it.”

“We have what is called student self-governance,” spokeswoman Wood says. “Students are very involved in any discussion about what is happening in their community.”

Blake says the university must be more proactive in expanding the ability of disciplinary bodies to investigate and punish hate crimes.

“You deal with it, it’s your job to make me feel safe,” Blake says of the university. “And if you ask me, you’re doing a horrible job at it.”

THE HOMEFRONT

Here at Harvard, students were cautiously optimistic that the incidents will generate increased awareness on the issues of race and discrimation.

“The curse is that [the incidents] happened and the implications are psychological for the students there, black and white,” says Lawrence E. Adjah ’06, the former president of the Black Students Association. “The gift of it all is that it spurred conversation and dialogue and made people confront the issue of race.”

While racial incidents have not happened here, that does not mean bigotry is absent, cautions Kwame Owusu-Kesse ’06, the former president of the Black Men’s Forum.

“While I do not believe such blatant acts would take place on our campus, I do believe other, more subtle forms of racism and prejudice can and do exist here,” Owusu-Kesse writes in an e-mail. “We, as a community, need to recognize that we do not live in a colorblind society and we must continue to educate ourselves and each other on race issues.”

—Staff writer David Zhou can be reached at dzhou@fas.harvard.edu.