I CANNOT express the disappointment that I felt as I read the front-page headline of The Cavalier Daily on Sept. 12, 2005, which read, "Beta Bridge vandals issue apology letter: Three students come forward after the FBI concludes graffiti is not racially motivated in letter to Casteen, Lampkin." I felt this disappointment not necessarily because there had been a supposed "end" and a "conclusion" in this one incident but because I felt as if the headline, along with the article which followed, opened up a new set of problems and realities which I, as a female African-American student, would have to face and deal with on Grounds each day. The main reality that I felt I had to face was one which said even the University of Virginia, my University, was leading the students on Grounds to believe that what is clear to me as a racial incident was not that because the FBI said so.
While I respect the FBI's conclusion, I cannot help but feel that there is clear evidence of a racially motivated act.Regardless of what decision was made, the motives behind the vandalism need no investigation by the FBI.
As a first year, I have been thrown into an atmosphere where I am away from home, and friends and family are far. On top of that, I have been forced to deal with these overbearing, regular occasions of hatred towards minorities on Grounds. I cannot help but feel personally attacked, even though I have not been a victim of these incidences directly. While it has been stressful, to be truthful, the first real pang of hurt that I felt occurred when I read the article on the Beta Bridge vandalism, because I felt like it was no longer just the ignorant cowards who painted, yelled, and screamed racial slurs in the night; it was the University of Virginia, not necessarily condoning the acts, but still trying to lessen the severity of the actions committed by those anonymous students.
Despite what the FBI says, history speaks differently. On Beta Bridge, there were words such as "GSociety" and "GWizard". To me and most others this stands for "Grand Wizard," which represents the Ku Klux Klan. I know this because in my research throughvisiting a KKK homepage, I found that "The great Confederate cavalry officer, General Nathan Bedford Forrest, was the first Grand Wizard, or national leader, in 1867." The Grand Wizard is representative of the founder of a white supremacist group that preys on and torments minority groups and races nationwide. How can those phrases be linked to "artistic expression" but not racism, hatred and prejudice?
The images of a black face crying white tears to me directly point to a specific race. The face is crying, and the threat "we'll be back" is also written. What else could these things mean besides racial motivation and a direct threat?
Not only do these words and images point to racial motivation, but the fact that those titles and pictures were painted atop the messages of two historically black organizations (Kappa Alpha Psi and B.U.C.K.S.) during a time when racial tensions are high and incidences are continuouslyoccurring leads me to question how artistic their motives were. If it was artistic expression, why not do it in the daylight (like most organizations that usually paint on Beta Bridge)? Why wait until a $5,000 dollar reward was offered in search of those who did the vandalism? Just because a different title such as "artistic expression" is given to a racially motivated hate incident does not change what it is. I, like many others, want an answer and want action taken, but I want the truth, not an answer that has been rushed and may not have been thoroughly investigated. I am thankful for the letter of apology from the vandals, but I want the truth of the reason for the apology.
I personally appreciate all the efforts that are being made by Casteen, the University Police, the FBI and all the other organizations on Grounds. None of this is their fault. Continuous action and education are what is needed to not only improve race relations on Grounds and in the nearby community but stop ignorance. Yet, the only way to educate is to be truthful and to face the ugliness and say, "yes, this is our University, but it too needs some work."
While I do respect and value the FBI's investigation and end conclusion, I feel that history speaks volumes above that. The phrases painted on Beta Bridge are historically things which represent racially motivated organizations which perpetuate hate and prejudice. Since I've been here, I have been told that "this is our University." So that is why we have to speak.
Krystal Commons is a first-year student in the College.
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