About 150 students gathered in front of Alamance Building to speak out against discrimination and raise awareness about challenges faced by many students at Elon.
Elon students organized an event titled Privilege Check on January 21, coinciding with the university’s observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. For nearly two hours in freezing temperatures, students took turns telling personal stories of their experiences at Elon and calling for the community to be more inclusive of students from all races, socioeconomic backgrounds, religions and gender identities.
The rally was organized by Kinsley Cuen, a senior from Roswell, Georgia. She told the crowd that “we have voices and we can use them” and described an experience in which she says she was told that she didn’t belong at Elon because she struggled with the cost of college.
Cuen said underrepresented students “should never feel like they’re alone,” having to hide their true identities or blend into the majority culture. In promoting the event on social media, Cuen said, “As a white girl on Elon's campus, I recognize the privilege my voice has, one that is often not afforded to others. I want to use that privilege to create a space where all will feel as though they can share their stories, feel validated in the often disheartening experiences they've had, and heal as a group. Hopefully, this will stir some action on campus.”
Among the many speakers was Student Government Association Executive President Kenneth Brown, who earlier in the day had issued a letter condemning racist and anti-Semitic graffiti that was written on a whiteboard at Campus Recreation on Jan. 17. In his statement, Brown wrote that, “…While these incidents can hurt us, make us feel discouraged, and reminds us of the harsh realities of our world, we can both acknowledge these feelings and continue to do the work that we know will push Elon to be an inclusive place for all…”
Brown called on the Elon community to understand the words of King, that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”