In response to racist writing at South City Campus, in which an individual wrote “KKK” on a whiteboard outside of the Student Writing and Reading Center, the Black Student Union and Utah Criminology Student Association held a forum of speeches earlier this month to celebrate solidarity.
The hour-long “Union for Racial Justice” event, held Feb. 10, featured talks from members of the BSU and UCSA and invited attendees to add to the larger conversation of racially motivated hate speech.
“I want to touch base on why we are all here today,” said Cynthia Mellin, president of UCSA, during the event’s opening. “We are anti-racism, we are anti-bigotry, and we are definitely anti-hate.”
Mellin responded directly to the subject of the writing.
“The KKK is known for lynching, terrorizing marginalized communities, and trying to erase the real history of America,” she said. “It’s easy to dismiss it, because it can be taken as just writing on a whiteboard, but it’s deeper than that.”
Following the incident, Terry Buck, lieutenant of the South City Campus police, told The Globe that he did not believe the person responsible for the writing would face criminal charges.
“First and foremost, this is not appropriate in any shape, fashion or form on this campus,” Buck said. “We are still working on it, but unless I find out something different, I do not believe there will be any criminal charges brought against this individual.”
“I’d say this incident was due to peer pressure,” Buck continued. “I would be hard-pressed to believe there was any kind of intent behind the incident. Simply put, it was an unbelievably bad and stupid decision.”
While speakers at the event said a high school student was responsible for the writing, Peta Owens-Liston, SLCC assistant director of public relations, could only confirm that the individual is not a student at the college and is a “youth.”
Despite a quick response from campus law enforcement, Mellin added that she felt dissatisfied with the handling of the incident.
“As most of you can guess, law enforcement will not be pressing charges,” she said. “And while it was a bad decision for this student — a privileged decision — it is my life, my family’s life, and my friends [who are affected]. This is a prime example of how marginalized communities have to learn to live in fear, but tonight even through fear we use our voice.”
Peter Moosman, who runs SLCC’s Gender and Sexuality Resource Center and reported the writing, also expressed dissatisfaction with the incident’s handling.
“I was shocked at how dismissive it was,” he said. “Like, ‘Oh it was a high school student just being stupid, no big deal, [there is] nothing to do about it.’”
“Regardless of the intent of this high school student, it was definitely coming from a place of privilege,” Moosman said. “I had to reflect on my own privilege and recognize that while this may just be a stupid high school student, it’s not just a stupid act.”
Moosman, who spoke at the event, ended his speech by asking those who are not members of the Black community to reflect on what an incident like the writing at South City Campus means to people of color.
“This moment allowed me to put myself in the shoes of my colleagues and students, and internalize their fear,” he said. “I hope [we] take more steps to make sure that this campus, college, and community is safe for all of our students, including our Black community.”
Sharifa Harrigan, the Black Student Union events planning chair, said she was grateful for the night’s speakers but had hoped for a greater turnout.
“I think tonight was very impactful and it was a good way to spread awareness to those who were here,” she said. “But I wish we had more support among all other campuses. We are just not made a priority.”
“I have mixed emotions,” Harringan continued. “I understand that they are a minor, but it would be nice if they apologized and recognized the consequences of what happened. Kids are oblivious that these groups still exist in 2022, and whenever Black History Month rolls around there is always something.”
A racially motivated incident occurred last year in February when a BSU-organized poetry slam, in celebration of Black History Month, ended abruptly after an influx of racist imagery, threats and comments overwhelmed the live Zoom event.
Future events planned in celebration of Black History Month at SLCC include the African American Read-in scheduled for Wednesday and “Black Identity and Colorism,” a BSU event scheduled for Thursday.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include Buck’s comments after the original incident.
