Both the UW-Madison administration and the Associated Students of Madison addressed the recent protests concerning racially charged events and hate crimes that occurred at the University of Missouri through separate releases Friday.
UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank referenced Thursday night’s campus-wide Black Out March where nearly 1,000 members of the UW-Madison community marched from Bascom Hill to the state Capitol to show support for Mizzou students.
“It was a powerful example of our community uniting to support those at Mizzou, fighting to end racism and pressing for improvements in our own institutional efforts,” Blank wrote in an online blog post.
ASM wrote an open letter of support to the Missouri Student Association, the undergraduate student government at Mizzou.
“We commend your strength and unity in systematically changing your institution and demanding solutions to a failed system,” ASM members said in the release. “Your organization and the students of Mizzou have shown that the student voice is powerful and influential.”
The administration and ASM both acknowledged how UW-Madison is not immune to similar racial issues on campus. According to information from the 2014-'15 UW-Madison Data Digest guide, minorities make up 6.8 percent of all students, slightly higher than Mizzou’s minority rate of 5.95 percent.
Blank said UW-Madison is creating a campus climate survey to “guide future improvement,” and gauge how faculty, staff and students experience campus life.
“Moving forward, we will continue to protest and stand together until all students can learn, live, and work in a safe environment,” ASM members said in the release. “You all have shown us first hand that institutional change can come from the movement of students.”
