Education

Blk Pwr Coalition responds to racism from UW-Madison student

Three members of the Blk Pwr Coalition student group at UW-Madison offer perspective on a white student using racial slurs on video and how the university is responding to calls for accountability.

By Steven Potter | Here & Now

May 5, 2023 • South Central Region

FacebookRedditGoogle ClassroomEmail


Elaine:
Unfortunately, acts like these are not uncommon here, and we decided that this was the time to really band together in order to make these things not continue to be a recurrence. The way that the university is handling not only this incident, but incidents involving race and bias as a whole, we're very disappointed, and there's definitely some concerns about our safety as students.

Protestors:
No justice! No peace!

Heaven:
The University of Wisconsin-Madison always speaks loudly and proudly of inclusion and diversity, and right now, it doesn't feel like you're backing up the students that have that diversity and inclusion. So we definitely think that person who talks like that and believes those things on campus or off campus or not and still is a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison does not belong here.

Protestors:
No justice! No peace! No justice! No peace!

Marques:
The fact that there's no consequences being brought to that, it encourages other people to commit the same actions as well, which hurts our community a lot, and then it's just a continuous cycle that we're going through the same thing or fighting the same battle.

Protestors:
I believe that we will win! I believe that we will win!

PBS Wisconsin is a service of the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.


Statement to the Communities We Serve

There is no place for racism in our society. We must work together as a community to ensure we no longer teach, or tolerate it.  Read the full statement.