\n<\/p>\n
For the second year in a row, a Black student group at the University of Missouri is facing pushback from administrators over their attempt to hold a back-to-school event with the word \u201cBlack\u201d in the name. <\/p>\n
The Legion of Black Collegians, a long-standing Black student government at Mizzou, had planned to host the on-campus Black 2 Class Block Party this week, but the group said in a social media post Wednesday that university administrators had canceled it.<\/p>\n
A university spokesperson told Inside Higher Ed<\/em> that Mizzou is \u201ccommitted to fostering an environment free of unlawful discrimination,\u201d and that the name of the event \u201csuggested it was race exclusive.\u201d<\/p>\n Likewise, Mizzou President Mun Choi added in a statement that \u201cwhen holding events using university facilities, student organizations must avoid excluding individuals based on race.\u201d<\/p>\n This follows a similar dispute last year, when the university changed the name of a similar LBC event from the Welcome Black BBQ to the Welcome Black and Gold BBQ, a nod to the university\u2019s colors. This year, LBC declined to participate, letting university officials know in July. <\/p>\n Student success experts and advocates for racial minority groups say the tension at Mizzou is just one example of an ongoing change in campus cultures nationwide. As various pieces of anti-DEI legislation take effect in red states and the Trump administration attempts to crack down on practices of so-called liberal indoctrination across the country, many students of color could lose access to vital hubs of cultural recognition, they say.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s no question that the political context, the messaging from this administration and the confluence of what\u2019s happening at state levels are extremely influential for white universities, who are often public schools that take public money,\u201d said Eric Duncan, a policy director with EdTrust. \u201cWe\u2019re not surprised, but we\u2019re disappointed in what\u2019s happening to Black students at Missouri.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to publicizing the cancellation, LBC also noted on Instagram that incidents of racism and hate speech on campus are on the rise and demanded that the institution schedule a town hall meeting within 60\u00a0days, publicly condemn racial harassment and send out an annual notification explaining the college\u2019s antidiscrimination policies.<\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s be clear,\u201d the student group wrote. \u201cThese actions are a deliberate act of erasure\u00a0\u2026 Recreational spaces for students of all identities are CRUCIAL.\u201d<\/p>\n Choi said the university \u201cwill not respond to demands.\u201d A university spokesperson later told Inside Higher Ed <\/em>that the university is \u201cnot aware of increased discrimination against Black students on campus.\u201d<\/p>\n Amaya Morgan, the current LBC president, said she met with Choi and other administrators to discuss the cancellation on Thursday afternoon\u2014a meeting the university later said was confidential and declined to comment on. <\/p>\n In an effort to avoid federal scrutiny, universities across the country have canceled events and closed diversity centers following Trump\u2019s ban on race-based programming and activities. A federal judge recently struck down one such order from the Department of Education, but in many cases colleges have already complied. Some institutional leaders have indicated they have few good options except to keep their heads down.<\/p>\n But for Morgan, the priority is for the university \u201cto have our back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe know we can\u2019t do anything about the block party now,\u201d she said, adding that racially driven harassment must still be addressed. \u201cObviously what we\u2019re doing to prevent discrimination right now is not working. So we\u2019re asking, how can we work toward a solution? That is why those demands were listed out like that.\u201d<\/p>\n Decisions to close minority student centers, shut down ethnic group\u2013based organizations and cancel culturally specific events are not new and started before Trump took office. News organizations and nonprofit groups have been tracking such actions, especially in Republican-led states, since the Supreme Court blocked the consideration of race in college admissions in 2023. <\/p>\n For example, colleges in Utah closed cultural centers and the University of Iowa terminated LGBTQ+ and Latino living-learning communities. Mizzou axed its Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Division in summer 2024 along with certain race-based scholarships and first-year student success programs like the Mizzou Black Men\u2019s and Women\u2019s Initiatives. <\/p>\n As a Black man who attended two predominantly white institutions, Duncan, of EdTrust, said that by shuttering these parts of campus life, universities are putting \u201ca lot at stake.\u201d For underrepresented students, many of whom are also first-generation, these programs are critical to retention and degree completion, adding that there\u2019s evidence\u2014anecdotal and data-based\u2014to prove it.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen Black and brown students and different cultures step onto college campuses, a lot of times they\u2019re looking for signals of inclusivity. \u2018Is this a place that I belong?\u2019\u201d Duncan said. \u201cRemoving [these welcoming and affirming spaces] not just passively, but by coming out and saying, \u2018We don\u2019t support this,\u2019 is a signal to people that maybe this is not a space of belonging for me.\u201d<\/p>\n Shaun Harper, a professor of education, public policy and business at the University of Southern California, echoed Duncan\u2019s remarks. He pointed to a paper he published in 2013 that showed that it\u2019s critical for Black students at predominantly white institutions to connect and teach one another how to navigate environments filled with microaggressions, racism and loneliness. Black student groups were key to this, the qualitative data showed.<\/p>\n Harper added that just because something is run by a Black student organization doesn\u2019t make it exclusive to other learners.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s never been a sign on the Black culture center door that says, \u2018Blacks only.\u2019 If white students, Asian students, Latino students and others, Indigenous students, wanted to come to those spaces, they were always welcome,\u201d he said. \u201cThe reason why I\u2019m so annoyed is that anybody who has ever attended [an event like Mizzou\u2019s barbecue] knows that they are not discriminatory, divisive spaces. In fact, they\u2019re spaces that are familial.\u201d<\/p>\n As Mizzou\u2019s LBC once again draws attention to what they call a lack of representation on campus, the university is also approaching the 10-year anniversary of protests that rocked the campus and made national headlines in November 2015.<\/p>\n One student went on a hunger strike to draw attention to racism on campus, and other students camped out on the quad in solidarity. Eventually, the football team joined the efforts. The strike ended when two university leaders resigned on the same day. <\/p>\n When Inside Higher Ed <\/em>asked university administrators how they had addressed the campus climate since then, university spokesperson Christopher Ave said, \u201cIt is difficult to accurately measure the campus climate.\u201d But he pointed to a record number of applications from prospective students, the increase in the percentage of underrepresented students and an improved retention rate on campus\u2014all of which, he said, \u201cillustrate that students want to attend and continue their education at the University of Missouri.\u201d<\/p>\n Ave added that calling off the block party doesn\u2019t mean that the university also considers its Black cultural center or LBC as examples of discrimination.<\/p>\n \u201cThis decision was based on the circumstances of this event, which was promoted with a name that suggested it was race exclusive and contrary to [federal civil rights law],\u201d he said. \u201cEach event or program must be considered on its own in context and the decision on this event does not dictate what will happen in any other circumstance.\u201d <\/p>\n Morgan from LBC declined to comment on whether they were seeking aid from outside groups to hold events like the block party off campus. The primary goal, she said, is to \u201cprotect the safety of Black students moving forward.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll be honest, I don\u2019t have a very clear path forward, but I know that as a Legion, we will still continue to do whatever we can to make sure that students are heard and make sure that our identities are heard and seen,\u201d she said. \u201cAs a Legion, we have existed for nearly 60 years. Excuse my language, but there\u2019s absolutely no way in hell that we [will] go, especially not under my watch.\u201d<\/p>\nColleges Put \u2018a Lot at Stake\u2019<\/h2>\n
A History of Racial Tension<\/h2>\n