The Black Student Union (BSU) is planning demonstrations of solidarity on the Sunday, Monday and Wednesday of next week, starting on Dec 14.
On Sunday, Dec. 14, there will be a workshop at 7 p.m. in the Student Diversity Center for those who wish to brainstorm and create for the following demonstrations.
On Monday, Dec. 15, a poetry protest will be held in the S.U.B. at 6:30 p.m. Participants may express spontaneous acts of artistry, and are encouraged to bring their poetry, prose and other lyrical work to share. The spoken word will revolve around the recent events of violence against black individuals and the issues of institutional marginalization.
On Wednesday, Dec. 17, there will be a march around campus as an act of solidarity. The march will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the S.U.B. and finish at 7:15 in Kilworth Chapel, to be followed by the “Race in Tacoma” talk from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.
This is just the beginning of the events planned by the BSU. More events will be held during the spring semester, and will be announced at that time.
“It is a very good feeling to see students energized, to see students moving out… of the zone of isolation, alienation, and expressing that they really felt that the [Die-In for Solidarity event] today was meaningful,” Professor Dexter Gordon, Director of the Race and Pedagogy Institute and African-American Studies, said. “[T]hey feel a sense of connection to a larger community that cares about issues that matter to them.”
Some of the questions raised by the BSU involve the need for action and for moving past just conversation. The Die-In event and these upcoming demonstrations invite the campus community at Puget Sound to take action against institutionalized racism and police brutality in America.
“Someone once said, ‘united we stand, divided we fall.’ But I guess it’s a matter of knowing what you’re standing for,” junior Nakisha Renèe Jones, President of the BSU, said. “At the heart of it, you need to have something to stand up for in order to make a statement. I would encourage everyone to find something to stand for, be active in our Puget Sound community and start making that difference.”
