The Black Students Union altered their originally scheduled topics of discussion on Monday, Jan. 30 in light of some of President Trump’s recent controversial executive orders.
Among these were the construction of a border wall, projected to cost anywhere from $12-15 billion, as well as a 90-day suspension of immigration from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Somalia, Libya and Sudan.
BSU Cultural Ambassador Tyra Wilson was the first member of the organization to formally speak on the topic.
“It’s incredibly disheartening to hear that what’s being posed as a travel ban…seems a lot more like a ban on a religious sect than just a ban on traveling surveyors of the world,” Wilson said. “There have been statistics and papers that have written about this that say that…of the ones that have come over, there have been zero crimes that refugees have committed on American soil.”
Muslim Students Association Advisor Asim Ali appeared at the meeting as a guest speaker, citing the intersectionality between Muslims and African Americans.
“People will try to diminish whatever you want to do, even if it’s ‘liking’ a post on Facebook that lets 20 more people know about something,” Ali said. “There was a friend I knew about that was stuck at an airport, so I shared the need for a lawyer on Facebook that’s shared, like, four times and somebody was able to find a lawyer for that person.”
Ali said minority students should “stay motivated” in the face of Trump’s political moves.
Ehren Walker, director of SPECTRUM, said minority groups affected by Trump’s policymaking need to stand together.
“We are an Auburn Family, and part of that means that we’re all in this together, and that means minorities need to group together to show solidarity, to show that we are a force at Auburn, that we are here, that we’re part of that Auburn Family,” Walker said. “I’ve met with Allen Sutton [director of the Cross-Cultural Center for Excellence], we are working on programs that are going to be intersectional events. I think we’ll be hosting one or two…over the next semester.”
BSU President Kayla Warner encouraged students to contact her with their thoughts on the Trump administration’s actions and how minority groups could potentially respond.
BSU Assistant Director of Public Relations Brian Young gave closing remarks for the meeting.
“If you’re not compelled to do something, then don’t do it, but we do have to remember that when we vote, when we do anything, it’s to set the tone, the climate, for us as Americans, because whether we know it or not we’re all connected in some way,” Young said. “Please, stay together, do things for the betterment of mankind.”
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