Hundreds of upset students attended a town hall on Cal Poly’s campus Monday night to express their feelings and opinions on a fraternity blackface scandal.
The emergency meeting came after a photo of a Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity member with a black-painted face was widely shared, sparking controversy.
It was standing room only inside the town hall organized by the Black Student Union. There were strong emotions and a push for administrative action.
Cal Poly students still filtering in for a town hall meeting after a member of a fraternity was seen in a photo with blackface, sparking outrage. pic.twitter.com/2YDAe3grCF
— Kelsey McFarland (@KelseyMarie_TV) April 10, 2018
"It doesn’t make me feel like this campus wants people like me here, or like I’m appreciated," said one student of color.
"From the get-go, you should have known that this is wrong," said another student.
"All you white people who are just sitting here, you just sitting down is doing nothing. You have the privilege to make action and make a change on this campus and none of you are doing s—," said a young woman in attendance.
A student in tears as she says “it’s sad I invested four years of my life to a university that allows their students to do something like that.” pic.twitter.com/RlCyOPZYMQ
— Kelsey McFarland (@KelseyMarie_TV) April 10, 2018
The organizer of the meeting also sent out an online document for all students to fill out, asking them to demand change.
Cal Poly announced Monday evening that the fraternity is temporarily suspended while the school officials determine whether university policy was violated. Lambda Chi Alpha’s national headquarters also has placed the Cal Poly chapter on interim suspension.
To read the full statement from the Cal Poly Lambda Chi Alpha chapter, click here.
To read the full statement from the president of Cal Poly, click here.
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