April 9th 2024.
In March, a group of students at Washington University caused a stir when they allegedly threw eggs, stood on tables, and used racial slurs in front of Black cafeteria workers. The incident sparked outrage and prompted the university's Association of Black Students to take action. On April 5th, they organized a sit-in at the university's dining hall to show support for the cafeteria workers who were not present during the incident. The students also took the time to write thank-you notes to the workers, showing their appreciation and solidarity.
According to the Associated Press, the group posted a statement on Instagram, calling out the prevalence of racism not just at their university, but at other elite universities across the country. The Association of Black Students stated, "It shows how racism is still a part of the culture and has been fostered at Washington University, elite institutions, and historically white organizations for far too long."
In response to the incident, the Alpha Eta chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha, a fraternity at Washington University, also showed their support for the Association of Black Students. They started a petition and asked for signatures to demand action from the university. Nicole, a member of the fraternity, shared the petition on Twitter, asking for others to join in and make their voices heard.
David Cook, the president of a food workers union in St. Louis, spoke to the St. Louis Dispatch about the incident. He mentioned that although the eggs and racial slurs were not directed at the dining room workers, they still felt uncomfortable. Taylor Robinson, the President of the Association of Black Students and an anthropology major, also spoke to the outlet. She expressed her shock and disbelief at the incident, stating, "Myself and other students, we talked to the dining workers. They serve us food, they ask us how we are, and we care about what happened to them. We could not believe that it was true."
The Association of Black Students has called for the two organizations involved in the incident, Alpha Phi and Kappa Sigma, to be banned from the university. They have also demanded that the students who participated in the incident be expelled. As reported by Student Life, the independent student newspaper at Washington University, both organizations have been temporarily suspended while the university investigates the incident.
A worker, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, shared that the incident may have been linked to frat week or rush week, based on what they had heard others say. The Dean of Students, Rob Wild, addressed the incident, stating that the university has a zero-tolerance policy for harassment of its employees and that the Office of Student Affairs is working closely with Dining Services to address the situation. He also mentioned that while fraternities and sororities have a traditional new member process, any violations will be dealt with accordingly.
Taylor Robinson emphasized the need for decisive action from the university, telling the St. Louis Dispatch, "The university needs to take action when things like this occur on campus. If they could do it to dining workers, who says they wouldn't do it to a Black student?" The Association of Black Students is determined to hold the university accountable and ensure that incidents like this do not happen again.
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