warning Hi, we've moved to USCANNENBERGMEDIA.COM. Visit us there!

Neon Tommy - Annenberg digital news

A Tenuous Future For USC Students Of Color

Amen Oyiboke |
May 9, 2013 | 5:48 p.m. PDT

Guest Contributor

We live in a society that pumps its blood through a racially wounded heart. (Amen Oyiboke, Neon Tommy)
We live in a society that pumps its blood through a racially wounded heart. (Amen Oyiboke, Neon Tommy)
In the early hours of Saturday May 4, 79 Los Angeles Police Dept. officers arrived at a predominantly black student party at 23rd St. and Hoover. During this police “raid,” six USC students were arrested and one LAPD officer was hospitalized for minor injuries. Why were the students arrested? Well, reportedly, students resisted the shutdown of the party by yelling at LAPD, circling cop cars and throwing debris, forcing LAPD to wear riot gear.

The situation hit an escalation point when things became physical. The alleged acts conducted by the students in my opinion, were uncalled for. There is no need, in any situation, to antagonize law enforcement, especially LAPD (given their bad reputation with racial profiling). However, given the circumstances that the students were presented with, they were surrounded by the spirit of anger.

I can only imagine the emotions running through partygoers’ and promoters’ heads as cops approached them to shut down their music and their party. These students did everything right. They checked IDs to make sure that every person who attended was a USC student. All they wanted was to enjoy their last day of the semester by throwing a party. That same night, a party hosted by white students was also warned by LAPD about noise complaints. They were shut down with much less force.

This event was somewhat of a déjà vu because just a month ago, another party hosted by black students was shut down by LAPD in full riot gear. Officers claimed that the event was shut down by LAPD because it fell outside of USC’s Dept. of Public Safety jurisdiction. However, the party was within DPS jurisdiction and could have been handled by school security. 

It baffles me to hear and see the unleveled treatment given to minority students versus students who are white. The issue comes to a head with the selective force given to minority-hosted parties, as if corruption only happens among people who have high concentrations of melanin in their skin.

Several times I have driven past USC's Greek Row late at night and witnessed underage drinkers passed out on sidewalks. Any given “Thirsty” Thursday, you will see girls distastefully dressed, walking like baby deer in their heels and too drunk to function. 

Sexual assault, rape and drug abuse can occur when someone is under the influence. Where are the LAPD and DPS for that? Or what about the parties hosted by students who use fake IDs to purchase alcohol? Do LAPD and DPS crack down on that?

An underage college girl or boy drunk in public poses a much greater risk than a student dancing at a party with loud music. Though, I’ve never seen a helicopter or squads of police officers crack down on the Row for loud music, either.

I’m not justifying the disruption or use of loud music in residential areas, but I would like to have an understanding of LAPD’s task force. This situation is far greater than parties and the subject of proper hosting etiquette. It is racially influenced. Racial issues tend to be a touchy subject for people to openly discuss without a flare of emotions, but they must be addressed.  

It is disappointing to hear that in this day and age, young women and men still have to face racism, prejudice and racial profiling. If DPS feels justified in allowing LAPD to shut down a minority-attended party because last semester’s shooting involved African-American suspects, then this campus is due for a rude awakening.  Associating the acts of a few bad people with an entire race is disheartening and makes me worry about the future of our school.

The experiences of incoming students could be tainted by racism that has occurred in the past, today and—unfortunately—in the future. Many minority students have said, “I’m a scholar, not a criminal,” and the statement rings true. Our surrounding communities have scholars with high hopes of attending college, but walls of racial misconceptions continue to keep them out. Where will they stand when they cannot step on a college campus without being judged because of previous events that were out of their control? Their parents will worry about them being discriminated against. Preconceived ideas about the circumstances of their admission will instill fear in them. And when night falls, they will be on edge about going to their own campus because of what may happen when they approach DPS.

The bridge of racial disconnect with the surrounding community has been built. What are we going to do to tear it down?

This problem isn’t new, nor is it something that can be swept under a rug. A decisive plan must be generated to stop things like this from happening again. But, will that ever happen? I once heard a student on campus say, “We live in a post racial society. I mean look at interracial couples and individual networks owned by people of color. We even have minorities represented in high positions, I mean look at President Obama.”

It was one of the most naïve statements I’ve heard to date.  Just because our president is black doesn’t mean that racism doesn't exist. If anything, it just gives people who discriminate fuel to become even more bigoted. We do not live in a post-racial society.  We live in a society that pumps its blood through a racially wounded heart.

USC is located in one of the most racially diverse parts of the city.  Administration, DPS and the students of our university have to continue to work towards never letting an episode like last weekend's happen again. The fuel and passion that students and faculty now have about racial profiling on campus cannot die down once the school year is over. The fire has to keep burning, because at any given moment, we are a step away from seeing another act of racial profiling happen to another race.

 

Read more Neon Tommy coverage of the alleged racial profiling incident here.

Reach Guest Contributor Amen Oyiboke here.



 

Buzz

Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

Watch USC Annenberg Media's live State of the Union recap and analysis here.