Photo: Matt Sachs, TexAgs
Texas A&M student body: 'Racism is not an Aggie value'
By Beau Holder
February 16, 2016
The Aggie Spirit is mobilizing once again.
A coordinated effort from the Texas A&M student body intends to send 10,000 hand-written letters to the high school students affected by hate speech during a recent visit to Aggieland, all communicating one message:
"Racism is not an Aggie value."
As reported by student newspaper The Battalion at the start of the week, A&M's Student Government Association is at the forefront of a campaign to deliver the letters to the visiting Uplift Hampton Preparatory School students from Dallas who were reportedly targeted by slurs and other heckling while touring the campus.
The Batt's article goes on to say that the Association of Former Students was responsible for purchasing the stationary SGA provided to write the letters on and, among the organizations participating, the Interfraternity Council and Collegiate Panhellenic Council pledged every member within the campus fraternities and sororities to write a letter.
The letters will be delivered to Uplift Hamilton in person later in the week.
Truly a coordinated effort from the Aggie Family.
A coordinated effort from the Texas A&M student body intends to send 10,000 hand-written letters to the high school students affected by hate speech during a recent visit to Aggieland, all communicating one message:
"Racism is not an Aggie value."
As reported by student newspaper The Battalion at the start of the week, A&M's Student Government Association is at the forefront of a campaign to deliver the letters to the visiting Uplift Hampton Preparatory School students from Dallas who were reportedly targeted by slurs and other heckling while touring the campus.
SGA will set up tables throughout Texas A&M for students to stop by and write to the affected high schoolers Monday, and organizations across campus have pledged to have their members participate. The letters will be collected and hand delivered to the high schoolers by the end of the week.
Joseph Benigno, Texas A&M’s student body president, said the letter campaign is a way for students to tell the high schoolers about true Aggie values.
“The true Texas A&M is a very friendly and welcoming place, and it’s loving and cares for every member of the Aggie family and we go out of our way to make sure that everyone feels welcome here,” Benigno said. “So I don’t want their experience at Texas A&M to be defined by that memory. I want their memory to be a Texas A&M that responded very well in the face of crisis and clearly stood up for what it really believed in, and not stood for hate.”
...
“We’re going to encourage them to write whatever they feel, but we would love for students to write about how what happened to the high school students does not represent Texas A&M’s values,” Benigno said. “At Texas A&M we try to pride ourselves on being the friendliest campus in the nation and so in no way what they experienced representative of our core values or what we truly stand for, and hopefully that can be communicated through the letters.”
Joseph Benigno, Texas A&M’s student body president, said the letter campaign is a way for students to tell the high schoolers about true Aggie values.
“The true Texas A&M is a very friendly and welcoming place, and it’s loving and cares for every member of the Aggie family and we go out of our way to make sure that everyone feels welcome here,” Benigno said. “So I don’t want their experience at Texas A&M to be defined by that memory. I want their memory to be a Texas A&M that responded very well in the face of crisis and clearly stood up for what it really believed in, and not stood for hate.”
...
“We’re going to encourage them to write whatever they feel, but we would love for students to write about how what happened to the high school students does not represent Texas A&M’s values,” Benigno said. “At Texas A&M we try to pride ourselves on being the friendliest campus in the nation and so in no way what they experienced representative of our core values or what we truly stand for, and hopefully that can be communicated through the letters.”
The Batt's article goes on to say that the Association of Former Students was responsible for purchasing the stationary SGA provided to write the letters on and, among the organizations participating, the Interfraternity Council and Collegiate Panhellenic Council pledged every member within the campus fraternities and sororities to write a letter.
The letters will be delivered to Uplift Hamilton in person later in the week.
Truly a coordinated effort from the Aggie Family.
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Discussion from...
11:59a, 2/16/16
I think this is a great grass roots response to show everyone that "true" Aggies don't support racism and we don't condone the alleged behavior of a few.
JoeAggie71, An Aggie BQ from the Class of '93 "B Battery Wildmen Move Out!!"
12:16p, 2/16/16
In reply to chipotle
quote:What if we just want the head football coach gone?
Let's not rest until the entire A&M administration is fired.
12:20p, 2/16/16
Outstanding effort by our students, student government leaders, the administration, and the full participation of the fraternities, and sororities, and corps members. There is no place for the embarrassing actions that took place. Especially in Aggieland where we hold ourselves to a higher standard.
1:17p, 2/16/16
There are allegations that some A&M "students" made some racial comments to some black high school students from the Dallas area who were at A&M to learn about A&M.
2:04p, 2/16/16
basically something might have happened to someone possibly but no one is sure exactly what, when, who, or why. ergo, ten thousand letters.
2:42p, 2/16/16
In reply to Joeaggie71
quote:You need to read up on A&M history; there is this little school down the road called Prairie View A&M and it's purpose is to educated the colored folks, while the white folks went to the A&M College of Texas
I think this is a great grass roots response to show everyone that "true" Aggies don't support racism and we don't condone the alleged behavior of a few.
4:16p, 2/16/16
In reply to TexAgs91
quote:That's an attitude only allowed anonymously. You go public with that attitude and you'll regret it.quote:Hopefully one day we will get to a place where we are a color blind society.
Sure are a lot of white people in that picture.
I do not support the letter writing campaign that the SGA is doing. If some white high school students toured the campus and someone shouted rude comments to them what would happen? Nothing. They probably wouldn't complain to the president of A&M and there certainly wouldn't be any letter writing campaign.
Should racial slurs have been shouted at those kids? No. But just because they are minorities does not make this a greater offense. We do not want to discriminate against minorities. But we should not go so far as to glorify them either.
The goal is a color blind society!
Granted this letter writing campaign is better than having the administration collapse with resignations and firings but this over-reaction mindset is no different.
4:27p, 2/16/16
What's wrong with a lot of white people in a picture? As long as none of them are dumb ass bigots who can't welcome people with different backgrounds on to our campus.
5:33p, 2/16/16
It's kind of like playing Where's Waldo? There is a black guy in that picture, you just have to look really hard to find him.
5:36p, 2/16/16
In reply to ABATTBQ87
How does that change his statement
quote:quote:You need to read up on A&M history; there is this little school down the road called Prairie View A&M and it's purpose is to educated the colored folks, while the white folks went to the A&M College of Texas
I think this is a great grass roots response to show everyone that "true" Aggies don't support racism and we don't condone the alleged behavior of a few.
How does that change his statement
7:00p, 2/16/16
In reply to ABATTBQ87
quote:WTF? You idiot.....this is what starts this crap.quote:You need to read up on A&M history; there is this little school down the road called Prairie View A&M and it's purpose is to educated the colored folks, while the white folks went to the A&M College of Texas
I think this is a great grass roots response to show everyone that "true" Aggies don't support racism and we don't condone the alleged behavior of a few.
7:25p, 2/16/16
In reply to ABATTBQ87
quote:Wow, that's almost exactly what I wrote on my letter to the students.quote:You need to read up on A&M history; there is this little school down the road called Prairie View A&M and it's purpose is to educated the colored folks, while the white folks went to the A&M College of Texas
I think this is a great grass roots response to show everyone that "true" Aggies don't support racism and we don't condone the alleged behavior of a few.
9:30p, 2/16/16
In reply to ABATTBQ87
quote:Improper conjugation of the verb, missing period on end of sentence... grade: D-.quote:You need to read up on A&M history; there is this little school down the road called Prairie View A&M and it's purpose is to educated the colored folks, while the white folks went to the A&M College of Texas
I think this is a great grass roots response to show everyone that "true" Aggies don't support racism and we don't condone the alleged behavior of a few.
9:57p, 2/16/16
It's like, how much more white could this be? And the answer is none. None more white.
10:09p, 2/16/16
In reply to Sid Farkas
Why? This is the ONLY attitude that will end racism. As long as we teach our youth that there is a difference between black and white and brown people, "racism" will exist.
quote:quote:That's an attitude only allowed anonymously. You go public with that attitude and you'll regret it.quote:Hopefully one day we will get to a place where we are a color blind society.
Sure are a lot of white people in that picture.
I do not support the letter writing campaign that the SGA is doing. If some white high school students toured the campus and someone shouted rude comments to them what would happen? Nothing. They probably wouldn't complain to the president of A&M and there certainly wouldn't be any letter writing campaign.
Should racial slurs have been shouted at those kids? No. But just because they are minorities does not make this a greater offense. We do not want to discriminate against minorities. But we should not go so far as to glorify them either.
The goal is a color blind society!
Granted this letter writing campaign is better than having the administration collapse with resignations and firings but this over-reaction mindset is no different.
Why? This is the ONLY attitude that will end racism. As long as we teach our youth that there is a difference between black and white and brown people, "racism" will exist.
10:12p, 2/16/16
In reply to AggdadIraq
quote:If people actually read the story about the incident, I believe you'll find that the color "orange" is to blame.
Gosh dang guys... 'Colored folks', really?!
10:13p, 2/16/16
In reply to WestGalvestonAggie
quote:Front row. Photoshopped?
It's kind of like playing Where's Waldo? There is a black guy in that picture, you just have to look really hard to find him.
10:22p, 2/16/16
This is ridiculous! It should be common sense that our campus is not racially divided. When you send out messages that try to convince people otherwise, it puts the idea in their head that the university needs defense. It doesn't. "Me thinks thou dost protest too much!"
1:24a, 2/17/16
In reply to 10thYrSr
Yes, it is ridiculous. These people live to protest. They cannot be appeased because they do not want to be appeased and we will lose ourselves trying. The best thing to do is be confident in ourselves, ignore them and move on.
quote:
This is ridiculous! It should be common sense that our campus is not racially divided. When you send out messages that try to convince people otherwise, it puts the idea in their head that the university needs defense. It doesn't. "Me thinks thou dost protest too much!"
Yes, it is ridiculous. These people live to protest. They cannot be appeased because they do not want to be appeased and we will lose ourselves trying. The best thing to do is be confident in ourselves, ignore them and move on.