UAlbany community reacts to racist texts
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -An email was sent out to UAlbany students on Thursday about racist texts being sent to students with African heritage. NEWS10's Anthony Krolikowski spoke with students and staff to find out the reaction on campus and what’s being done to help those affected.
"I've seen this email for the first time a couple of days ago and it did worry me. It definitely gave me a bad feeling that this is going on around the country and I was definitely a bit worried," said Michael Walker, majoring in Business Administration.
"It's about enslaving the African American population again. Which was very frightening to these young kids," described Professor Marcia Sutherland. She teaches a course called 'The Psychology of the Black Experience' and goes into detail on racism.
Her message to students with African heritage is to be proud. "When you have a strong ethnic identity, no matter what you see in terms of different levels of racism, it doesn't affect you very much." Come Tuesday, Professor Sutherland will be having a discussion with her class on these racist texts.
Even with that positive outlook, the text messages have left many students unsettled. "Something like this happening, especially right after an election that was very divided, it was pretty upsetting," stated Jarrett Jacobs, majoring in Communications. "You don't want somebody to do that to you."
The following is part of a larger statement from Professor El-Ra Adair Radney:
"This is why as educators we do what we do, because we know that anti-Black/anti-African values are taught and systematically maintained and it breeds and validates a dangerous ignorance. While we express our sincere empathy and arms of continued support for our student body of African heritage, this must also embolden and encourage us in the unrelenting work of racial justice change agents, who value a more informed, better educated and non racially traumatizing way of life."
UAlbany's email to the student body included the following resources:
"If you receive a concerning message, you can report it to the University Police Department by calling 518-442-3131 or emailing UPDWeb@albany.edu. Alternatively, you can make a report via UAlbany’s Bias Incident Reporting Form.
If you feel overwhelmed or need support, there are many resources available to you on campus. Residential Life staff, the Dean of Students Office, our intercultural resource centers, your professors and others are here for you!
Additionally, the Office of Health Promotion (OHP) and Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) are available to provide support. If you need to speak with a counselor urgently, CAPS support is available 24/7 by calling 518-442-5800."
The Office of the Attorney General is also encouraging anyone receiving these messages to report them to the Attorney General’s Civil Rights Bureau by calling 800-771-7755, emailing civil.rights@ag.ny.gov, or filing a complaint online.
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