Despite ban, ASU group vows to continue protest
Some Arizona State University student organizations are moving forward with plans to host protests against racial injustice despite a recent statement by President Michael Crow warning that students who participate in large gatherings could be suspended.
Crow on Tuesday announced that students participating in social gatherings, whether on or off-campus, that do not adhere to public health protocols would be subject to suspension.
The move was directed at mitigating the spread of COVID-19 as the number of confirmed cases has grown rapidly since the start of the fall semester, with the number of cases tripling from 161 to 480 over three days.
That prompted the Black African Coalition, which had planned an Aug. 30 protest with Sun Devils United and the Multicultural Solidarity Coalition, to announce on Thursday that it would no longer be involved in the event. The group’s withdrawal from the event was first reported by The State Press.
The Multicultural Solidarity Coalition said in a Friday letter that it would be moving forward with the march, saying the university “continues to harass and intimidate Black students” but that it would “not be silenced.”
The letter said those participating in the march, scheduled to start at 6 p.m. at Daley Park, would be required to wear a mask, practice physical distancing and follow all guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We are upset about the intimidation tactics used by the administration to bully ASU’s Black African Coalition, threatening to expel the organizers who have come together to address the racism of this institution,” the letter said.
Coalition leaders noted in the letter that the Multicultural Solidarity Coalition is purposefully not a registered student organization because of its experience with the university “suppressing student organizations’ freedom.”
The letter said if the university suspends coalition organizers for participating in the protest, it would be willing to go to court against the university.
“If you touch one of us, you touch all of us, and all of us are ready,” the letter said.
The group also said it’s “more concerned” about the pandemic than the university is, saying that campuses should never have been reopened. It added that it canceled a protest in July out of concern for the virus.
It said Crow has “refused” to meet with them and “continues to suppress our voices.”
“You cannot stop us, you cannot block us, we will not be silenced.”
The university did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the group’s claims against Crow.
The Black African Coalition said the decision was made in an effort to adhere to its mission of “increasing retention and graduation rates within the Black, African, African American and Caribbean communities.”
Though the coalition withdrew from the march, the group still encouraged its members to exercise their First Amendment rights and continue supporting various issues including disarming and defunding the ASU Police Department and the university hiring more faculty of color.
“Minorities’ voices matter,” the statement read. “Use your voice to spark the change that Arizona State University needs.”
Black African Coalition President Aniyah Braveboy posted a second letter addressed to university administration confirming that the group had no affiliation with the planned Sunday march.
In it, Braveboy said the group told students about the potential consequences of attending the event and asked student organizations to delete any posts linking the group to the march.
The letter went on to claim that university officials stated that the group would still be held responsible for “being aware” of the march and that that was “a way to silence the BAC from other initiatives we are pursuing.”
Braveboy said it “baffles” the group that the university is honed in on their activities while, they said, turning a blind eye to white students gathering in large groups.
The letter also claimed that Student Rights and Responsibilities was “stalking” its social media platforms, calling its actions “borderline harassment.”
Braveboy said the university’s actions amounted to it not respecting students’ First Amendment rights.