The editorial board for New York University’s student newspaper Washington Square News penned an editorial defending a student-led push to provide Black student-only housing.
This came in response to criticism of the push from several outlets, including The Post Millennial and The Federalist.
“NYU has not agreed to provide housing only designed for students of one race, contrary to the claims made in several articles,” the editorial pointed out. “Instead, NYU has moved to implement a themed engagement community celebrating Black culture in residence halls. Themed engagement communities are a longstanding tradition in NYU dorms where students can apply to live on a floor centered around a common interest or theme.”
“Calling themed engagement communities ‘segregation’ — a term heavily associated with the creation of white-only spaces under Jim Crow laws — overlooks the oppression Black individuals suffered under legitimate segregation and the institutional racism that persists today,” the editorial continued.
It further argued that Black students need separate housing since “White people have never experienced anything close to systemic racism.”
The writers acknowledged that the Irish have faced discrimination in the past, but unlike Black people, they were able to get ahead socioeconomically “by oppressing Black people.” According to the writers, anyone who is accusing NYU of segregation is ignoring ongoing “institutional racism” that causes “Black students to need a supportive space in the first place.”