Students and alumni shared stories of racial profiling on campus.
The most recent story comes from Broderick McQuarters who was awoken Sept. 27 by police who were questioning him about a crime he didn’t commit.
The only similarity McQuarters shared with the suspect was his race. His hair is longer, and he is heavier than the person the police described to him.
See Page 1 for more on the story.
The only evidence they had for questioning McQuarters was that he was the last one through the gate, which wasn’t enough evidence to justify coming into his room.
When the official police report came out, it was revealed that only one suspect was listed on the report, a white female, which isn’t what the police told McQuarters.
What campus police did was invasive, coming into McQuarters’s room in the middle of the night and questioning him without substantial evidence.
While people think OCU is an accepting campus, these types of microaggressions make students feel threatened.
Campus police need to make sure they have all the facts before they invade students’ privacy.
McQuarters got fast food and returned to his dorm room to sleep the night he was questioned.
A couple of weeks ago, a poster for the Black Student Association was torn down, followed by the destruction of an Art Club poster standing in solidarity with the group.
BSA was advertising a social for all students. The art club was making a poster to express their support for another campus organization. These were simple, innocuous statements and advertisements of student organizations, not racially divisive or offensive messages. If people looked at things as they actually are, it would be easier for students of color to feel safe on campus.
Alumni have also shared stories about discriminatory experiences with campus police. This has no place in our campus community.
The most important thing people can do right now is stand with those affected and support facts. Stay informed about what’s actually happening in your community.
When we ignore the facts of a situation and rely on prejudices, we’re contributing to larger issues of racial stereotyping and injustice.
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