Racial tension between black and white State students is an ongoing problem, black student leaders said at a forum Wednesday.
The Residence Hall Association hosted the civil rights forum, titled “Where we are, where we were, and where are we going.” It included discussion among panelists, as well as feedback from a multiracial audience in McCool Auditorium.
The four panelists were former Black Student Alliance President Sherman Green, current BSA President Eric Wesley, RHA President Timothy Jackson and Alpha Phi Alpha President Eddie Martin Jr.
RHA Vice President Jeremy Johnson moderated the event.
During the forum, Jackson said he thinks there are obvious problems with race relations at MSU. Everyone becomes secretive during Homecoming, and each race sits and associates in its own little group at the football game, he said.
Green agreed. He said when blacks come to MSU, they feel pressure to hang out with white people because whites are the majority race on campus.
There is also great pressure on blacks to act right and not fall into stereotypes, Wesley said.
Martin said blacks should first address the problems causing trouble within their race. Blacks have endured slavery and hard times, and they have forgotten that, he said.
“Our problem is we don’t care,” Martin said.
Martin said there is a tendency among blacks not to “let the ladder down for others to follow,” which is evident on campus and in the black fraternities.
The panelists also addressed questions relating to the prominence of African-Americans in pop culture and politics and on the MSU campus.
Oprah Winfrey and Condeleeza Rice are two people who have succeeded on opposite ends of the spectrum, but both have made great statements about how blacks can affect society, Green said.
People look to these women and see successful individuals. They do not focus on their skin color, Wesley said.
However, Jackson said the representation of the black community in politics is not good enough. There should be more focus on the local level and not just the national level.
“It’s about accountability,” Jackson said.
Some elected officials are not doing what they should for the people, and the people need to elect someone who can get the job done, Jackson said. Most blacks vote for a candidate because he is black, and they do not consider that he has not accomplished anything for them since he has been in office, he said.
The panelists also addressed the growing popularity of hip-hop music.
Wesley said the genre has done several positive things because it provides a means of expression for the black community.
“It’s brought a lot of spotlight or attention to the African-American community,” Wesley said.
However, some feel that more could be done through the music.
“It hasn’t done what it has the capability to do,” Jackson said.
This genre has power to change a generation, but many of the artists have taken no stand to do this, he added.
Hip-hop carries certain stereotypes that people associate with every black person they meet, and this is the problem, Green said.
“Race is a factor in every position of your life,” Green said.
Carmen Bertasi, a senior educational psychology major, said she found the forum interesting.
“I heard a lot of different perspectives that I had never thought about, but I agreed with them and enjoyed thinking about them,” Bertasi said.
There were fewer than 20 people present, but Johnson said the rain prevented some from coming.
“I feel that, whether 20 or 200 people showed up, it was a success,” Johnson said.