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| Photo by Sipho Mpongo |
#RhodesMustFall
Students of color at Oxford University have been calling for the removal of the Cecil Rhodes statue on campus and have demanded Oxford to acknowledge its legacy of colonialism. Sizwe Mpofu Walsh, a founding leader of the movement, continues to speak out about Oxford's systemic racism and colonial domination: "we think that Oxford is institutionally racist and throughout its history it has significant biases towards Black people. The first Black student was only accepted in 1938." White supremacist and Oxford University Chancellor Lord Patten has responded to the campaign by stating anyone uncomfortable with Cecil Rhodes legacy should "think about being educated elsewhere or go to China."
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| Photo by Jake May, The Flint Journal |
#FlintWaterCrisis
The enormous amounts of lead contamination found in the water of Flint Michigan has sparked outrage. People of color make up over 57% of Flint's population and about 40% are living in poverty. In 2014, the city announced its switch to river water in an effort to save money. Today it is estimated that over 9,000 children in Flint have dangerous levels of lead poisoning in their blood. On January 5, 2016 Governor Rick Snyder finally declared a state of emergency in Flint. Yet, information has surfaced that Gov. Rick Snyder knew of the water contamination years before and took no action. On January 14, 2016 residence stormed the Sate Capitol Building demanding that Snyder be held responsible. A rally at the State Capitol will be organized on January 19, 2016 to demand Snyder's removal. The rally will be held during the governor's State of the State speech.
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| Photo via cornellsun.com |
#POC@IC
On January 14, 2016 in a historic turn of events, President Tom Rochon announced that he will be "retiring" from the Ithaca College presidency in July of 2017. The news comes after much organizing and agitation from POC students, walk-outs, occupations, and rallys. Up until his announcement, President Rochon has been insistent on remaining in office despite the mountain of disapproval from the campus body. This landmark victory for students comes on the heels of a new Spring semester. However, Rochon mentions that he will be leaving in 2017, which gives him one last year in office. He has manipulated the circumstances of his exit so that he may negotiate a retirement package with the board of trustees. Most importantly, he has not headed the students demand for his immediate exit. The 2017 date is close to his actual end term and he has intended to pacify the people.
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| Photo via Twitter |
#ResignRahm
The Laquan Mcdonald cover-up sparked a massive walkout of over 500 people on December 18, 2015 in downtown Chicago. Following the release of the Cedrick Chatman video, which Mayor Rahm Emanuel has known about for some time, there has been an even greater push for Emanuel's resignation. On January 14, 2016, in response to the release of the video, a small group of protesters marched outside of the Mayors home in Ravenswood, Chicago calling for Emanuel's resignation. On January 15, 2016, Emanuel attended an MLK breakfast that was interrupted by protests inside and outside the building. Armed police officers guarded the event as demonstrators locked arms outside of the building demanding Emanuel's resignation. Inside, Rev. Matthew Ross interrupted the proceedings chanting "16 shots and a cover-up."
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