We   attend a university where our peers believe we do not belong here; where   they decry the usefulness   and necessity of affirmative action; where they claim we segregate ourselves because we lean one each other to survive. We attend a university  that is  obsessed with the optics of our black and brown faces but is indifferent to the justice we seek.This is not an indictment of white people; this is an indictment of a system that   perpetuates white supremacy and shelters our peers under the   warm   blanket of white privilege- all the while,  we  are left  to freeze  in our  frigid  reality of  racist  epithets, essentialist curriculum,  and apathetic  governance.  In post-racial   America, our   classmates call  us  n***ers from  their  pickup trucks  in broad   daylight.  In post-racial   America, weare   berated   by airborne   bottles   on our   own   campus.In   post-racial America, we   are told we have a chip on our shoulder.   We are   called   everything but  our  name. Above all else, in   post-racial America we are bombarded by the deafening silence  that allows the centuries-old hum of  white supremacy to grow louder. Silence is violence.

The Interfraternity Council and  Panhellenic Council both present a system that not only excludes people of color,   but exudes white supremacy. The verbal and physical assault of a young black student, committed by members   of the Chi Chapter of Psi Upsiloncannot   go unpunished and the Cornell   administration  can no longer stand silent while we are under attack. The fact that it has taken the administration far too long to realize the extent of the systemic issues   that exist at our school is unacceptable.

We   believe   that our   community   has a   responsibility   to learn   about   the ways   in   which systems   of power   and privilege   continue   to inform   the   experiences of   people   of color   both   on campus   and out   in the   world.   We believe   mandatory   course work will   provide   an initial   means   of challenging and   dismantling   the white   hegemony   that pervades   the   university’s   present curriculum.

We   demand that   all   employees of   the   university, academic   and otherwise   (including   tenured professors),   to have   appropriate,   ongoing training   (tied   to evaluations   and   payroll) that   deals with   issues of   identity   (such as   race,   class,religion,   ability   status, sexual/romantic   orientation, gender,   citizenship   status,etc.).   We   want this   coursework   to be   explicitly   focused on   systems   of power and   privilege   in the   United   States and   centering   the voices   of   oppressed people.