Blackburn Takeover

Last updated

The Blackburn Takeover was a student protest at Howard University in Washington, D.C. that started on October 12, 2021 and ended on November 15, 2021, to protest poor housing conditions. Leaders in this protest include Channing Hill, Aniyah Vines, Deja Redding, Jasmine Joof, Lettirose Cargill, Cherelle Muhammad, Tyler Davis, and Elishabeth Cunningham. The #BlackburnTakeover went viral on social media platforms including Instagram and Twitter. The Live Movement, which is an HBCU coalition, helped in amplifying the protest. [1] A primary complaint of the protesters include mold, mice, flooding and substandard living conditions in residential buildings on campus. Around 150 students have erected a tent city outside of the Blackburn University Center, demanding an improvement in living conditions and representation on the university's board of trustees. [2] [3]

The students had 4 demands which are as follows:

1. A town hall with President Frederick and the entire student body. 2. Student trustee positions are to be permanently reinstated on to the Board of Trustees of Howard University. 3. A comprehensive housing plan to remedy all issues plaguing on campus and off campus housing. 4. Academic, legal, and disciplinary immunity for all of the protestors involved.

Reaction

The university claimed that as a result of the protest, Sodexho food service employees of the Blackburn café were laid off. [4]

A number of prominent figures came out in support of the student protest. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City University of New York</span> Public university system in New York City

The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven senior colleges, seven community colleges, and seven professional institutions. In 1960, John R. Everett became the first chancellor of the Municipal College System of New York City, later known as the City University of New York (CUNY). CUNY, established by New York State legislation in 1961 and signed into law by Governor Nelson Rockefeller, was an amalgamation of existing institutions and a new graduate school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boston University</span> Private university in Boston, Massachusetts, US

Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodists with its original campus in Newbury, Vermont, before being chartered in Boston in 1869. It is a member of the Association of American Universities and the Boston Consortium for Higher Education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Central Florida</span> Public university in Orlando, Florida, U.S.

The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public research university with its main campus in unincorporated Orange County, Florida. It is part of the State University System of Florida. With 68,442 students as of the fall 2022 semester, UCF has the second-largest on-campus student body of any public university in the United States. UCF is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Howard University</span> Historically black university in Washington, D.C.

Howard University is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C., located in the Shaw neighborhood. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chief Illiniwek</span> Former mascot of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Chief Illiniwek was the mascot of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), associated with the university's intercollegiate athletic programs, from October 30, 1926, to February 21, 2007. Chief Illiniwek was portrayed by a student to represent the Illiniwek, the state's namesake, although the regalia worn was from the Sioux. The student portraying Chief Illiniwek performed during halftime of Illinois football and basketball games, as well as during women's volleyball matches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deaf President Now</span> 1988 student protest at Gallaudet University

Deaf President Now (DPN) was a student protest in March 1988 at Gallaudet University, Washington, D.C. The protest began on March 6, 1988, when the Board of Trustees announced its decision to appoint a hearing candidate, Elizabeth Zinser, over the other Deaf candidates, Irving King Jordan and Harvey Corson, as its seventh president.

The Tasmanian University Student Association (TUSA) formerly known as Tasmania University Union (TUU), is the peak body of student representation for tertiary students attending the University of Tasmania and was established in 1899.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Cornell University</span> History of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York

The history of Cornell University begins when its two founders, Andrew Dickson White of Syracuse and Ezra Cornell of Ithaca, met in the New York State Senate in January 1864. Together, they established Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, in 1865. The university was initially funded by Ezra Cornell's $400,000 endowment and by New York's 989,920-acre (4,006.1 km2) allotment of the Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862

<i>The Hilltop</i> (newspaper) Student newspaper of Howard University

The Hilltop is the student newspaper of Howard University, a historically black college located in Washington, D.C. Co-founded in 1924 by Harlem Renaissance writer Zora Neale Hurston and Louis Eugene King, The Hilltop is the first and only daily newspaper at a historically black college or university (HBCU) in the United States.

The Fisk University protest was a student protest from 1924–1925.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disinvestment from South Africa</span> Economic boycott against apartheid South Africa

Disinvestmentfrom South Africa was first advocated in the 1960s in protest against South Africa's system of apartheid, but was not implemented on a significant scale until the mid-1980s. A disinvestment policy the US adopted in 1986 in response to the disinvestment campaign is credited with playing a role in pressuring the South African government to embark on negotiations that ultimately led to the dismantling of the apartheid system.

The Black Student Movement (BSM) is an organization at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It is the second largest student-run organization and one of the largest cultural organizations on the school's campus. The organization was created on November 7, 1967 to combat problems of black recruit, admissions, and integration on UNC-CH campus.

The 2010–2011 University of Puerto Rico strikes (UPR) refer to the student strikes which took place between May 2010 and June 2010 in ten of the university system's eleven constituent institutions, as well as the protests that occurred from October 2010 to February 2011.

The Black Action Movement was a series of protests by African American students against the policies and actions of the University of Michigan. The protests themselves took place on three occasions in 1970, 1975, and 1987. Many student organizations participated in the movement, which has been called one of the most challenging for administrators in the school's history. Alan Glenn of the Ann Arbor Chronicle said of the 1970 protests that "the BAM strike became one of the few protests of that era in which the students could make a valid claim of victory."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wayne A. I. Frederick</span> Trinidadian surgeon and academic

Wayne Alix Ian Frederick is a Trinidadian-American scholar, surgeon, and university administrator. He served as president of Howard University in Washington D.C. from July 21, 2014 to August 31, 2023. Frederick also serves as the distinguished Charles R. Drew Professor of Surgery.

The Lancaster University Students' Union (LUSU) is a students' union at Lancaster University in Lancashire, England. It is a registered company and charity overseen by a board of trustees. Politically, it is led by six sabbatical officers - a President and five Vice-Presidents - who are elected annually by the student membership.

Immediately following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the Silent Vigil was a social protest at Duke University that not only demanded collective bargaining rights for AFSCME Local 77, the labor union for nonacademic employees, but also advocated against racial discrimination on campus and in the surrounding community of Durham, North Carolina. Occurring from April 4, 1968, to April 12, 1968, members of the University Christian Movement began planning a campus-wide vigil in memoriam of Dr. King. Another group of undergraduate students called for a protest march to address prevalent issues concerning the primarily African-American nonacademic employees at Duke in Local 77. Together, both student groups, along with the support of Local 77, most of the teaching faculty, and civilians not affiliated with the university, sparked a non-violent demonstration that involved over 2,000 participants, making it the largest in Duke's history. The Silent Vigil stands out from other contemporary college movements due to the collaboration between primarily white students and faculty, and mainly African-American workers. Furthermore, unlike rowdier protests at the University of California, Berkeley and Columbia University, Duke's Silent Vigil received considerable praise for its peaceful approach, especially considering its surrounding Southern backdrop. Inspired by the Civil Rights Movement, the Silent Vigil not only aimed to externally change Duke's white, privileged, and apathetic image in the eyes of the Durham community, but also internally set a powerful precedent on Duke's campus for student activism in the future.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015–2016 University of Missouri protests</span> Series of student protests

In 2015, a series of protests at the University of Missouri related to race, workplace benefits, and leadership resulted in the resignations of the president of the University of Missouri System and the chancellor of the flagship Columbia campus. The moves came after a series of events that included a hunger strike by a student and a boycott by the football team. The movement was primarily led by a student group named Concerned Student 1950. The movement and protests were documented in two films, one made by MU student journalists and the other, 2 Fists Up, by Spike Lee. While it is alleged that bad publicity from the protests has led to dropping enrollment and cutbacks, others have cited budget cuts issued from the state legislature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 University of Manchester protests</span> Student protests at the University of Manchester

The 2020 University of Manchester protests were a series of student protests and rent strikes at the University of Manchester in England. The protests began on 5 November 2020, and occupations ended on 25 November 2020. The protest was in reaction to perceived mishandling of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic by university management. The goals of the protests were a removal of fencing erected during the COVID-19 lockdown and a reduction in rents in halls of residence. This later expanded to goals including improvement of living conditions, increased access to support services and the removal of senior university leadership figures, such as Vice-chancellor Nancy Rothwell.

Columbia University in New York City, New York, has seen numerous instances of student protests, particularly beginning in the late 20th century.

References

  1. Richardson, Randi (October 26, 2021). "Howard students protest over mold, mildew, mice and other poor housing conditions". TODAY.com. Archived from the original on 2021-10-26.
  2. Williams, Elliot C. (October 23, 2021). "Howard University Protest Continues For 10 Consecutive Days, Into Homecoming Weekend". Deist. Archived from the original on 2021-10-23.
  3. Pusatory, Matt; Arnold, Jess (October 13, 2021). "Howard University students stage sit-in over board representation, housing issues". wusa9.com. Archived from the original on 2021-10-13.
  4. 1 2 "Howard University President Addresses Housing Issues, Stops Short Of Meeting Protesters' Demands". DCist. Archived from the original on 2021-11-08. Retrieved 2021-11-08.