It was a rougher time at UF.
When Betty Stewart-Fullwood attended UF in the 1970s, she fought for her civil rights through student walkouts and office takeovers.
Stewart-Fullwood, a triple Gator who worked at UF for 35 years before retiring, said during those days, the entire black student population could fit inside the same auditorium where a meeting for black students was held Monday night.
About 300 students gathered in the Reitz Union Rion Ballroom for a discussion hosted by the Black Student Union. The talk let black students share their feelings and fears about the Charlottesville, Virginia, riots and Richard Spencer, a white supremacist who intended to speak at UF.
Dwayne Fletcher, a UF agricultural education and communication senior and the president of BSU, moderated the discussion. He asked the crowd why they thought white supremacists hated them and if anyone would protest if white supremacists came to UF’s campus.
Stewart-Fullwood heard the audience’s discussion and then shared her experience. She told students to remember that no matter where they were born, they’re all black and should stick together.
“This type of event helps students realize they’re not alone,” Stewart-Fullwood said.
After sharing their feelings about the recent events, students in the audience questioned Fletcher about where BSU stands on campus. They wanted to know how quickly BSU’s president could get in touch with UF President Kent Fuchs and what actions the organization would take to ensure its members felt safe on campus.
Fletcher said if he needed to contact Fuchs, he would first get in touch with Vice President of Student Affairs David Parrott.
Fletcher also told attendees that large student organizations, including the Hispanic Student Association and the Asian American Student Union, are working on initiatives that will “unite students on campus” and “take action.”
When an Alligator reporter asked further questions about the projects underway, Fletcher said he couldn’t release any details until they become official.
“I feel that people are optimistic about the school year now,” the 21-year-old said.
Kalimah S. Ujaama, a UF African American studies and political science junior, said the questions Fletcher asked at the meeting should have focused on advising people on how to react if someone attacked them.
Ujaama said students should have discussed ideas about how to deal with microaggressions, such as someone making racially-charged comments about skin color.
“I thought it was generic,” the 21-year-old said about the meeting. “It should’ve been better.”
Kayla Rodney, a UF graduate student pursuing a doctoral degree in English, said the meeting was productive because it served as a safe space for students to talk about how they feel.
But she said the meeting’s effectiveness will not be known until later in the semester.
“We need to see what happens in the coming months to measure the effectiveness of it,” Rodney said. “If something does change, then we’ll know.”
jtavel@alligator.org
@taveljimena
