So right now, I have to ask: are we really supposed to take none of this at face value?
First there was Unity Field. Now the African American Cultural Center is embroiled in yet another controversy, this one surrounding the latest changes to the facility that have left many Black students questioning the future of a space intended to celebrate and give them a sense of community. And no, before any of you rush to type up an excuse or a thought piece, there is not a single Black student who genuinely believes that none of this has anything to do with race.
That usually comes up first when we begin talking about the changing landscape around us.
This is about security. This is about space. This is about logistics. This is about policy.
This is apparently about everything in the world that isn’t tied to the very special nature of a space that directly affects Black students as their own special thing.
Convenient. This isn’t about an intentional effort by LSU to deliberately make our lives uncomfortable. However, this has reached the point where it’s difficult to simply dismiss what has happened with LSU after the Unity Field situation and call it “just a coincidence.”
Unity Field was a space of gathering. The African American Cultural Center is where African American history, culture, and community are concretely manifested on this campus, and you can’t replace either by suggesting that there are other places that students can occupy space. Yes, technically.
But that misses the heart of the whole issue entirely.
You can provide a Black student with another room. But that room is not necessarily the same because it holds a different kind of significance. You can issue a formally written and correctly worded announcement, but that’s of no great comfort. And that “professional” explanation behind any decision, however valid it may be, can still provide Black students with an opportunity to see the bigger picture.
From the perspective of Black students, I see all of this because I know that culturally significant spaces can be changed very quickly from being celebrated and special to being seen as simply an optional component of campus life.
LSU can talk about being an inclusive institution. LSU can talk about diversity. LSU can showcase African American history with Black History Month.
But if the actual spaces where that community thrives continue to shrink and grow more inaccessible each day, well what in the world is being celebrated? We need to stop allowing anyone to expect that Black students will keep quiet in acceptance and give thanks for our allowance to still exist on the outskirts of campus. That’s not inclusion.
That’s accommodation.
That’s about accommodation not about inclusion. Unity Field. That was the first step. Next comes the African American Cultural Center.
LSU should probably stop telling students to give their process a chance and instead give them a reason to give the current direction a chance.
Because sooner or later, none of this can be attributed to chance.
Because when the spaces keep disappearing, eventually, we have to stop asking what’s next—and start asking who’s next.
Based on reporting by Southern University – SouthernDIGEST.
The post COMMENTARY: How Much of Our Community Are We Expected to Give Up? appeared first on BlackPressUSA.
