A second protest hosted by the BLK PWR Coalition took place at UW-Madison yesterday in response to the perceived inadequate response by the university to a racist video circulating on social media, and subsequent responses to student demands.
Over 500 deep, protesters met at the bottom of the hill at Bascom Hall before heading to Library Mall around 3:15. The second protest took place following what organizers felt was a lackluster response from the office of the chancellor’s statements following yesterday’s protest and to restate their demands for the university to take action.
Added to their list of demands this time was to have the university ensure that no backlash would come to organizers and participants of protests. Organizers did not wish to be identified by name as a precaution.
Safety took priority as water, a safety team and police escorts worked to let protestors know that support services were ready at a moment’s notice.
“It’s really amazing to see that there’s this type of community and this type of support for us. Just don’t give up on us. This is not all we’re after today. Today is about joy. Yesterday there was a lot of hard feelings, a lot of stuff that had to be said, but today is about celebrating us as Black people on this campus, and taking up some space,” said an organizer of the event.
Loud and proud, Madison’s Black students and allies planned on being heard this time. Once again, chants filled the campus and streets as they occupied University Ave.
“If we don’t get it, shut it down,” and “They think it’s a game, they think it’s a joke,” were chanted by protestors aimed at the university.
The protest stretched into the evening as breaks were occasionally taken to keep spirits high. Music, food and water were distributed to make sure protesters could keep going into the evening.
