Nubian Message, Aug. 27, 2020 — Y'all tired? Cuz we tired: Black students subject to racism

NUBIANMESSAGE NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY | RALEIGH, NC | THENUBIANMESSAGE.COM | THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020

Y’all tired? Cuz we tired

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020 | 2

Letter from the editor Hey y’all, There is so much sh*t going on so I doubt y’all even wanna read this letter -- I dont even wanna write it. Ima still write a poem about it: Doors to doors Walls to walls Boxes to boxes Oh How They’ve Ruined Us All.

THISISSUE 4

INTERVIEW WITH FARRAH WADDELL

6

INTERVIEW WITH ABOLISH GREEK LIFE

7

PROTECTING YOUR PEACE

7

POEM

NC State Failed Another Black Student

Founders Talk About Beginning And End Self Care During A Pandemic

A Black Girl Seeking Freedom

This is our last print issue for…. However long. It’s been real cool rocking with y’all for these past 2 issues.

This issue highlights some things that have been on campus and the internet.

Despite it all, I gotta include a quote from Rod Wave:

cover photo BY Aditya Penumarti/Staff Photographer Students and parents move belongings back to their cars during an early move-out for students.

“Weight of the world on your shoulders and your feeling all alone. You got it, my ni**a, just hold on” Keep ya head up.

The Sentinel of the African-American Community at N.C. State Since 1992.

As always, Nubian will still continue to release content via our website (thenubianmessage.com).

314 Witherspoon Student Center, NCSU Campus Box 7318, Raleigh, NC 27695

Please follow our socials @NubianMessage for updates.

office 919-515-1468 advertising 919-515-2411 online thenubianmessage.com

Be easy, Elikem Dodor

Elikem Dodor

Editor-in-Chief

nubian-editor@ncsu.edu Ugonna Ezuma-Igwe Managing editor

nubian-managingeditor@ncsu.edu Arana Blake

Layout designer

Priscilla Boaheng

Social Media Manager

Only with the permission of our elders do we proudly produce each edition of Nubian Message: Dr. Yosef ben-Yochannan, Dr. John Henrik Clark, Dr. Leonard Jeffries, The Black Panther Party, Mumia A. Jamal, Geronimo Pratt, Tony Williamson, Dr. Lawrence Clark, Dr. Augustus McIver Witherspoon, Dr. Wandra P. Hill, Mr. Kyran Anderson, Dr. Lathan Turner, Dr. M. Iyailu Moses, Dokta Toni Thorpe and all those who accompany us as we are still on the journey to true consciousness.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020 | 3

news

What’s Going On With the United states Postal Service Ugonna Ezuma-Igwe Managing Editor

“Postal Service warns 46 states their voters could be disenfranchised by delayed mail-in

ballots” “Trump administration taking unusual steps to put its stamp on Postal Service ahead of November elections” “House approves bill to send $25 billion to Postal Service and halt changes” All of these are headlines from major news outlets targeted at addressing what could change about the United States Postal Service (USPS) and how it could affect citizens of America. It is not new news that Donald Trump is not a fan of mail in voting as he has made it known through his tweets.

On May 26, 2020, he tweeted “There is NO WAY (ZERO!) that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent. Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out & fraudulently signed. The Governor of California is sending Ballots to millions of people, anyone..... living in the state, no matter who they are or how they got there, will get one. That will be followed up with professionals telling all of these people, many of whom have never even thought of voting before, how, and for whom, to vote. This will be a Rigged Election. No way!”

Donald Trumps words on Thursday August 13th confirmed where he stood on the USPS. Donald Trump said he did not want to fund the USPS because he would not like it to be used for mail-in voting come elections this November.

This news has caused an uproar and many citizens and politicians have stated that if the United States Postal Service is defunded then it’s a form of voter suppression.

The defunding of the United States Postal Service would have a large effect on voting as this election year there is expected to be an unprecedented amount of people voting through mail in ballot.

In May, the House of Representatives passed a $3 trillion coronavirus relief package, which included relief funds for the USPS. This is due to the USPS stating that without additional support, it may not be able to meet deadlines for delivering voting ballots.

As a response to the relief package, Donald Trump appointed Louis DeJoy as US Postmaster General. Louis DeJoy is a

known supporter of Donald Trump -- he has donated more than $2 million to Trump since 2016.

Since Dejoy has been postmaster general, he has banned postal workers from working overtime and making extra trips to deliver mail on time, removed over 600 mail sorting machines and either locked up or taken out letter collection boxes. While Dejoy has stated he won’t make anymore significant change to the postal service till after the election, the effects of the changes that have been made are being felt -- an example: mail delivery has slowed down.

As the USPS prepares for what’s to come, they have sent notices to 46 states-- North Carolina included-- and D.C. that warns that they may not be able to guarantee that mail in all ballots for the November election will arrive in time to be counted. Millions of voting Americans planning to use a mail-in ballot have stated that they feel hopeless as they are being told that no matter what they do their voice could be left uncounted for.

Citizens depend on the USPS for voting, receiving and/or paying bills, receiving online shopping packages, receiving timely medical prescriptions and much more.

Many voters such people with disabilities and senior citizens depend on mail in voting as they are unable to get to actual voting sites.

The USPS acts as a public service to citizens, making it’s prices relatively lower than private mailing businesses such as FedEx and UPS. Private mailing businesses don’t build offices and have mailing locations in many rural areas because it would not be beneficial or profitable to them.

1 in 5 Americans live in rural America and the poverty rate is lower in rural areas than in urban areas. This means that many won’t be able to receive their mail since they can’t afford to use private businesses.

The USPS is the only mail service that is legally required to deliver all mail to all postal addresses in all regions. Without the USPS, rural America will not be able to receive their daily necessities.

The USPS being defunded would have a major impact on their workers. Nearly 20% of USPS employees are veterans, over 20% are Black and 8% are Hispanic. The USPS was one of the few places that accepted and provided work for veterans after the Vietnam war, especially Black veterans, and veterans who fought in the Middle East.

Also, there has been increased evidence that these groups -- veterans, Black and Brown citizens -- all have a disportionately higher chance of contracting coronavirus. Postal workers go house to house and business to business, potentially exposing themselves to coronavirus. While America has been struggling to contain the spread of coronavirus, postal workers were at the forefront of it all. They continued to do their job as diligently as they could in the circumstance they were presented with.

Individuals are not the only ones who are dependent on the mailing system as many online shopping marketplaces such as Amazon, Walmart and Target. Also UPS, DHL, and FedEx use the USPS to deliver some of their packages from warehouses to packages’ final destinations. The USPS helps these marketplaces and carriers manage their orders by allowing them to deliver packages to local Postal Offices; where postal workers make deliveries for them within a certain

radius.

While it is true that the USPS does not produce a profit, this article articulated how Americans are dependent on their services.

The USPS has decreased it’s full-time, benefited employees from over 750,000 in the mid-1990s to under 500,000 today. These are one of the actions the USPS has actively worked to reduce the money that it is spending to reduce its deficit.

The USPS is not a typical business that operates solely to turn a profit. It is a public good that the constitution intended for the people of America to have. Without the USPS a lot of the benefits such as speed delivery will no longer be a normality but a luxury.

Exploring a change of major outside your current college?

Academic Advising Programs and Services can help you!

AAPS Walk-in Advising Virtual Advising Information about all majors and minors advising.dasa.ncsu.edu I 919-515-8130 #NCStateAdvising

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020 | 4

features

Once Again, Black NCSU Students Are Subject To Racism On Campus Time and time again, Black NC State students experience racism at a place they are supposed to be able to call home.

attack. During the BIRT meeting all that was really communicated to us were the resources available to us if we were in need of counseling and not resources to bring justice or ensure that racism isn’t tolerated on campus. I don’t want counseling because I am not going to sit there and be sad that I was called a ni**er; I am angry that these men have essentially gotten away with being racist and it feels as if the school is taking no real action in taking responsibility. Apart from the COVID-19 cases that continue to pop up on campus this whole ordeal has made me feel unsafe, unwelcome, and like my voice is unheard.

Elikem Dodor Editor-in-Chief

Nubian Message was able to sit down with Farrah Waddell, a first-year Life Science student with the intent to major in Cellular Molecular and Developmental Biology.

Within her first days on campus, she was subjected to harassment through racial slurs and public intimidation from fellow NCSU students.

NM: Could you describe in detail what happened to you?

FW: On August 12th at around 10:08 pm, my friend and I entered the Howling Cow marketplace to find something to eat. Soon after we entered the store a group of about five [white] men came in clearly intoxicated.

As they fell in line they kept getting uncomfortably close to my friend and I even after SEVERAL attempts to show them we were uncomfortable and tried moving away. They still persisted and clearly tried to make us uncomfortable and intimidate us.

Then we noticed how they kept snickering and looking over at us and then one man in the group called us ni**ers. My friend and I looked at each other and we moved through the line as quickly as we could and made sure we both had our pepper spray if the men continued to provoke us or were to attack us. My friend told me that she was about to have a panic attack so we left the store as quickly as possible. We then told our other friend what had happened to us and she and two other acquaintances tried to get footage of the group to submit a report.

NM: What actions did you take at a university level?

FW: I submitted a BIRT [Bias Impact Response Team] report the very same night and submitted the footage my friend took of the group. A day or two later, I along with my friend who got the footage had a meeting with someone from BIRT who said we could be connected to campus police (which I was hesitant about doing so because I knew that proper effort wouldn’t be put forth into our case). A detective

Sadly, Farrah’s story is not the first and probably not the last of its kind.

Contributed By: Ourstate.com

from campus police met with us and told us that even with the video footage from security cameras within the marketplace and the footage we provided in our report the suspects couldn’t be identified and it was essentially a dead end.

NM: What did you hear back from the university?

a protected class; (iii) Severe or pervasive; (iv) Objectively offensive; and (v) So unreasonably interferes with the target person’s employment, academic pursuits, or ability to participate in University programs or University-sponsored activities as to effectively deny equal access to the University’s resources and opportunities.

FW: The detective told us that since there was no violence inflicted upon my friend and I no real action could be taken against their intimidation. Since the school has a policy that says that academic probation or any like discipline can’t be brought on because of the school’s “two strike-esque” policy they could not be reprimanded for racial harassment.

In determining whether student conduct violates these provisions, all relevant facts and circumstances shall be considered. Care must be exercised in order to preserve freedoms of speech and expression, as articulated in current legal standards. Advice should be sought from the Office of General Counsel and the Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity, as appropriate.

In the Code of Student Conduct, section 10.11 titled Harassment: (a) No student shall threaten, coerce, harass or intimidate another person or identifiable group of persons, based upon the person’s membership in a protected class; or (b) No student shall engage in harassment that creates a hostile environment.

Harassment that creates a hostile educational environment includes conduct that is (i) Directed toward a particular person or persons; (ii) Based upon the person’s membership in

NM: Do you feel like NCSU did the best to protect you?

FW: From the get go I wanted the school to take responsibility and acknowledge what had happened and not try to sweep this issue under the rug because the school preaches about creating a safe environment for all and one that strives for racial equality.

However on my SECOND day of classes my friend and I were called niggers and harassed by a group of white men and my friend was almost pushed into a panic

Since Jan. 27, 1994, there have been several incidents, documented in Nubian Message, of Black NCSU students experiencing racism on campus. Nubian Message published our first issue on November 30, 1992 -- Black students were not allowed on campus until 1965 (even though the school was founded in 1887), therefore dozens of stories that have gone undocumented or overlooked by larger campus publications.

Within the 2019-2020 academic school year, we’ve seen: racial slurs spray painted in the free expression tunnel, racist GroupMe messages, “It’s Okay To Be White” flyers plastered around campus, students using racial slurs via social media platforms and so much more.

On June 18, 2020, Chancellor Woodson released a statement saying “I also hope you will join me in doing all we can to ensure a university climate that embraces, values and advances a diverse, inclusive and supportive campus culture.”

Farrah’s experience showcases that little to nothing can be or will be done when Black student’s are subjected to racial slurs and public intimidation on our campus.

opinion

This was cute but...

Since May, many companies, actors and actresses, and publications have been trying to publicly show their support for Black Lives Matter. The problem is they are once again doing what they think is best for Black people not what Black people have asked them to do.

People in these powerful positions have a tendency to listen and let the information go through one ear and out through the other.

We say “We want y’all to show your support by demanding Breonna Taylor’s murderers be charged.” They hear “We want y’all to show your support,” and then they proceed to only put a black banner at the top of their website to show their support of Black Lives Matter.

That black banner is not a meaningful way for companies to show solidarity with Black Lives Matter. It shows the lack of thought, understanding and cognizance of the platform these companies have. These companies know they can do more but choose to do performative acts of activism in order to save face.

We want calls for action, shouts for justice and demands for atonement. Since these companies, actors and actresses, and publications clearly don’t understand how these actions are not what Black people want, I took it upon myself to call them out on their rubbish.

Here are some actions that were truly acts of performative activism:

Ugonna Ezuma-Igwe Managing Editor

1. Companies releasing thoughtless illustrations

On May 29, PrettyLittleThing released an illustration showing “support” for Black Lives Matter. Now they knew good and d*mn well when their graphics designers were making this illustration that Black people aren’t actually the shade of black. It should have been a no brainer not to release this illustration but no Pretty Little Thing did the bare minimum and thought we should clap it up for them.

2. Entertainment industry doing God knows what Actors dropped out of roles no one was thinking about. This seems to be the entertainment industry’s favorite way to show “support” cause the number of times they did this was astronomical. On June 24, Kristen Bell stated she would no longer voice a mixed-race character in Apple’s ‘Central Park’ then on June 27, Mike Henry said he would no longer voice Cleveland on ‘Family Guy’. You’d think the industry would stop there but no they decided to do more and

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020 | 5

Staff Playlist

on June 28, Hulu removed an episode of “Golden GIrls’ because they thought the mud masks worn were racist. I don’t know about y’all but last time I checked we wanted the murderers of Breonna Taylor to be charged, the police to be defunded and police to be held accountable for their actions. We didn’t ask for this nor were we thinking about this.

3. Actors doing “Pick me, pick me, I wanna be seen”

This one actually blew me. On May 28, many celebrities went to twitter to show they had “matched” a $50 donation meaning that they wanted the world to see that they had donated $50 to different organizations.

Countless celebrities from Ben Schwartz to Steve Carell to Patton Oswalt to Olivia Wilde to Virgil Abloh all went to Twitter to proudly say they matched $50. I just wanna know what these actors thought they were doing for us cause… With the platforms they have it’s clear that $50 was not much for them and it showed the lack of effort that was put into their allyship.

4. Posting nothing but a black square

How are companies and publications gonna post a black square and think they’ve done enough. It is not a legitimate act of solidarity when these companies and publications remained silent when they knew their voices would matter. Posting a black square in this manner is nothing more than an empty and performative gesture. These performative acts blocked people from receiving important information from the BLM hashtag because those posting did not understand that they were inhibiting the flow of information, further damaging and trivializing the movement. Then after they posted the black squares these companies had the audacity to go back to being radio silent. These companies must really think their audiences aren’t very bright cause we know this was not what we asked for.

These actions were cute and all but they weren’t what we asked for. We know what we wanted and y’all aren’t doing it. These companies, actors and actresses, and publications need to stop being performative and learn how to be proper allies to the Black Community. If they don’t know how to, I suggest they read the MANY articles that have been published on this topic. It’s not the responsibility of Black people to educate these people as Google is free and has been.

Stop making Black people who are fighting for themselves, their families and friends also have to call out and educate people on how to fight for them.

Graphic by Kyle howe

Afeto Sweet Sensation Yawa No Dey Need U Bad Sittin Up In My Room

Mayra Andrade Orezi & Sheebah Kelvyn Boy Jazmine Sullivan Brandy

Good Woman

La’Porsha

Not Gon Cry

Mary J Blige

Do it

Chloe x Halle

The Boy is Mine No One Soldiers life

Brandy, Monica Alicia Keys Rod Wave

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020 | 6

features

Interview with Abolish Greek Life jalen Rose On July 20, an Staff Writer NC State student

created an Instagram account known as @ abolishncsuifcandpanhel. The account’s purpose is to highlight issues within predominantly white Greek life. Within a few months, the account has gained 1,500 followers. This account is a reflection of a growing movement calling for the abolition of white Greek life.

The Nubian Message was able to sit down with the creator of the account to learn more about the movement. For the safety of the student(s), the identities of anyone involved will not be disclosed.

NM: What initially moved you to create the account?

Abolish Greek Life (AGL): I was motivated to create the account by the pre-existing accounts at universities across the nation, specifically at Duke and UNC Chapel Hill.

NM: What, in your opinion, are some of the most pressing issues within white Greek life?

AGL: There’s a list of them that I have. [My] abbreviated list is: racism, classism, rape culture, binge drinking culture, queerphobia, ableism, student safety (including Covid). Some people try to invalidate this movement because these are issues that exist in all of society outside of Greek life. But there is strong, repetitive evidence that the existence of Predominantly White Greek Life (PWGL) exacerbates these problems. For example, fraternity men are 300% more likely to commit sexual assault, a statistic that has been confirmed by multiple, separate studies and women in sororities are 74% more likely to experience rape than other college women.

NM: Are you working alone or is this a group organization?

AGL: I am currently working with 5 other undergraduate NCSU students.

NM: Why do you think the abolish Greek life movement has gained so much traction in the past few months?

AGL: The movement began at few grassroots universities who got their following from accounts that were sharing sexual assault survivor stories accounts like @dearpwi (@dearncsu is NC State’s). I grew increasingly irritated at the discrimination

Contributed by: abolish ncsu ifc and panhellenic

and lack of action. Also, people [have] been holding more organizations accountable for being performative and not making substantial change within their organization.

NM: How has the reception been?

Is it positive? Negative? Both?

AGL: Reception has been mixed.

Interactions with our posts grow increasingly negative when specific Predominantly White Greek Life Organizations (PWGLOs), people in them, and photographic evidence are shared. This is understandable, but it is also important to note that sharing more specific proof forces organizations and people to be held accountable. I will also say that the vast majority of people who are against this movement are in PWGLOs and it appears that the majority of people who aren’t in PWGL support the movement.

It’s important to question the reasons why people of color (POC), queer people, people with disabilities, and people at lower socioeconomic statuses are less likely to want to get involved with PWGL. NM: Do negative comments deter you from wanting to continue with the movement?

AGL: No, I think they do the opposite for me. They prove how scared privileged people act when their privilege gets challenged and how hard they work to keep

those systems in place that keep them in power at the expense [of] others.

NM: What are your thoughts on the many Covid clusters within NC State’s Greek life?

AGL: There have been numerous accounts of members of PWGL life partying and actively disregarding Covid guidelines. Not all from partying but also choosing to go out to eat inside restaurants and otherwise not Covid-safe. I think those members of PWGL have been irresponsible and are to blame for the high numbers in their chapter and putting fellow NC State students at risk. There is also a reason why there are no clusters in NPHC (National Pan-Hellenic Council) or Multicultural Greek Council (MGC) Greek life at NC State. There was that Policy Watch article that came out before class even started that the house mother at [Delta Kappa Epsilon] DKE at UNC quit because the DKE members refused to stop partying.

NM: Have you been in contact with other abolish Greek life movements?

AGL: Yes, we have been [in] a group chat for the coalition of all abolish PWGL groups that exist in universities in this country.

NM: Do you find the work you’re doing to be rewarding?

AGL: Yes. I think a lot of people have wanted to make actual change after George Floyd’s death. To me, this movement is a way to help all POC who have been harmed by predominantly white Greek life. And obviously it’s not just POC but also queer people, people with lower socioeconomic statuses, people with disabilities, and people who are victims of sexual assault, sexism, and rigid gender roles.

NM: Do you have any future plans that involve discussions with the NC State administration?

AGL: Our main focus in the past few weeks has been asking university administration and the office of Fraternity & Sorority Life to move recruitment online and hold predominantly white Greek life accountable for increasing the spread of Covid-19 on our campus. With Panhellenic recruitment and all classes moved online, our goal has mostly been met. Now that that is mostly taken care of, we can focus on our long-term, ultimate goal of abolition. We plan to do this in multiple ways. We will create a petition detailing how the existence of PWGL on NC State’s campus goes against our values of inclusivity and respect and grow the movement at our school to include more students, faculty, and staff.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020 | 7

opinion

Protecting your Peace This school year is already one for the books, two weeks into the semester, classes are already switched to online delivery. And with classes taking a lot of time and energy, NC State isn’t really helping with their Oluwajoba daily ‘updates’ of when Ogun positive cases are found Staff Wrier on and off campus. This forces us to readjust the plans we had for the school year.

Now this can take a toll on the average student: On the computer screen all periods of the day, up all night working on papers, organizing clubs meeting via zoom, still trying to keep up with your social life. Let’s not forget about how seniors are applying for jobs and studying for their intro exams into graduate schools --- all while trying to enjoy what’s left of their undergraduate career. In the midst of it all, slowly packing some things up because we are now required to move out of the residence halls.

So where does this leave your inner peace?

Mental health?; an aspect of your life that needs to be intact in order to keep your head above water, clear your mind to make rational decisions and most importantly in this case, help you juggle all of your priorities.

It is important to protect that inner strength you carry inside -- especially as students of color.

Here are some things that you can do to help protect your peace or help you find it this semester: 1.

Be aware: Take control of the negative thoughts that encompass your mind and your reaction to them. Be aware of your surroundings; be around people and things that will uplift you in those dark times. Have a positive mindset; what you think is who you are.

2.

Exercise: Go for a walk or run a couple times a week. Not only are you receiving vitamin D from the sun, but you are also producing endorphins which can increase your well-being.

3.

Get involved on campus: Joining organizations will introduce you to people that most likely share the same interests as you and can create a good distraction from the realities of life.

4.

SLEEP: With everything that is required of us socially and academically, it is essential that we refresh ourselves with a good night’s sleep daily.

5.

Set time away from the screen: Too much screen time is proven to shorten attention span and memory.

So set aside time to do things you haven’t done in a while, things that bring you peace, like reading self-help books, writing, painting etc. Get to know yourself on a deeper level.

Just to remind you, it is OKAY to be selfish: When it comes to protecting your peace, it is necessary to put your needs and feelings first. That may look like stepping back from relationships, speaking your mind about a matter, canceling commitments or just taking a personal day.

Nobody is perfect, everyone needs time to themselves and it is okay if people don’t understand, they don’t need to. When you start to do things that bring you happiness,

“When you start to do things that bring you happiness, you will attract the right kinds of people.” you will attract the right kinds of people.

As we continue to give energy to our studies and other life activities, let us also remember to pour that energy back into ourselves.

Find that peace within and never let it go, no matter the cost.

When Will I Ever Be Free?

When will we ever be free?

When will I ever be free?

They honestly don’t give a

Speaking out against my abuser

damn about me

is automatically equated to

Saying I ain’t really get shot

A ploy to turn the Black woman

So I showcased my wounds to

against the Black man

the world

My abuse was not a singular

Asking who shot me

story

I told the truth

And there are so many others

Now I’m a snitch

like me

Now I should’ve known better I should’ve, could’ve, would’ve

When will I ever be free?

Shut the hell up!

Free to feel To hurt

When will we ever be free?

To cry

Free to be protected without

To breathe

conditions

To be everything intended for

Without having to smile or

me?

respond to advances Without having to be deemed

Maybe freedom is not destined

desirable

for me

“Protect Black women” is

Maybe a Black girl like me will

something scattered in a bio

never be free?

Yet never applied in real life Does my life not matter to you?

- Elikem thee Poet

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