Lori Meadows
The University of Michigan has a history of Black student activism, with several instances of protests and demands being made by Black students over the years. The first major incident occurred in 1968 after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., when students protested the university administration's lack of support for minorities on campus. This was followed by the Black Action Movement (BAM) protests in 1970, demanding increased Black student enrollment and better representation for Black students and staff. Similar demands were made in 2014 by the Black Student Union, and in 2017 by the Students4Justice organization, highlighting the ongoing struggle for racial equality and representation at the University of Michigan.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year | 1968, 1969, 1970, 1973, 1975, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2020 |
| Demanding Party | Black Student Union, Black Law Student Alliance, Black Psychologist, Black Educational Caucus, Students4Justice, Third World Coalition Council, Students of Color Liberation Front |
| University President | Robben Fleming, Mary Sue Coleman, Mark Schlissel |
| Demands | Increase Black student enrollment to 10%, better representation on campus, more affordable housing options, improved bias incident reporting protocol, creation of activist space on campus, greater support for racial justice organizations' leadership, decolonizing the University's pedagogies and campus, minimizing policing on campus |
| Results | University agreed to increase Black student enrollment to 10% by 1973, creation of the Ella Baker-Nelson Mandela Center for Anti-Racist Education, University President came up with a three-pronged approach |
| Issues | Racism, racial trauma, alienation, lack of representation, racial health disparities, police brutality |
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What You'll Learn
The 1970 Black Action Movement protests
The 1970 Black Action Movement (BAM) protests at the University of Michigan were a series of demonstrations and strikes by African American students against the university's policies and lack of diversity. The protests, which began in late 1969, were led by a coalition of Black student organisations, including the Black Student Union, the Black Law Student Alliance, and the Black Educational Caucus, among others.
In February 1970, BAM presented then-University President Robben Fleming with a list of demands, which included:
- Increasing Black enrollment from 3.4% to 10%, matching the state's Black population, by 1973.
- Providing more financial aid and grants for Black students.
- Hiring more Black faculty and staff.
- Improving support for Black studies programs and establishing a Black Student Centre.
The protests shut down the University of Michigan for 18 days through strikes, picketing, blocking of buildings and streets, and the interruption and shutting down of classes. The movement gained widespread support, including from non-BAM members and white students.
The university administration eventually agreed to some of BAM's demands, including working towards the 10% Black enrollment goal, providing financial support, and creating a position to monitor minority affairs. However, the university fell short of this goal, reaching only 7.3% Black enrollment by 1973-1974.
The 1970 BAM protests were considered a significant victory for the students, marking a pivotal moment in the university's history and contributing to the ongoing struggle for civil rights and racial equality in higher education. The protests also highlighted the slow progress of racial integration at the University of Michigan, an issue that continued to be addressed in subsequent years through further protests and initiatives.
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2014 Black Student Union demands
In 2014, the Black Student Union (BSU) at the University of Michigan issued a series of demands aimed at addressing racial inequalities and improving the experience of Black students on campus. This was not an isolated incident but part of a long history of activism at the university, including the Black Action Movement (BAM) protests in 1970, 1975, and 1987, which the BSU was heavily involved in.
The 2014 demands were a continuation of the fight for racial equity and justice on campus, and they included:
A New Trotter Multicultural Center
The BSU demanded a new Trotter Multicultural Center to be located on Central Campus, making it more accessible to students. This demand reflected a long-standing goal of the BSU, with the original demand for such a center being made in 2013 through the #BBUM campaign on social media. The #BBUM campaign invited students to share their experiences of "Being Black at the University of Michigan" and gained national media attention.
Better Representation for Black Students
The BSU called for improved representation and support for Black students on campus. This included increasing Black student enrollment to 10% of the student population, which was a demand first made during the 1970 BAM protests. The university had previously agreed to this demand but had failed to implement it, leading to further protests in 1975.
Affordable Housing Options
The BSU demanded more affordable housing options on campus, addressing the financial burden faced by many students. This demand reflected a broader issue of the high cost of living and the lack of affordable options in the area.
Additional Demands
While the specific details of all seven demands are not publicly available, it is clear that the BSU's 2014 campaign built on the legacy of the BAM protests and the ongoing struggle for racial equity at the University of Michigan. The university's response to these demands is also not publicly available, but it is known that the president at the time, Mary Sue Coleman, proposed a three-pronged approach that addressed some, but not all, of the demands.
The 2014 BSU demands and the university's response demonstrate the ongoing need for proactive measures to create a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable campus environment.
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2017 Students4Justice occupation
In 2017, the Students4Justice group at the University of Michigan held a sit-in at the Michigan Union to protest against racist and anti-Semitic emails sent to University of Michigan engineering and computer science undergraduate students. The sit-in also responded to the defilement of a prayer rug in the reflection room in the Shapiro Undergraduate Library. Around 60 students marched from the Diag to the Union, with the number growing as they progressed. The group wound its way through the building and then occupied the study rooms on the first floor. Over 150 students and community members took part in the sit-in.
The sit-in began on Thursday, February 9, at around 4:15 p.m. and was planned to continue until the Union closed at 2 a.m. Victoria Johnson, a UM junior and philosophy major, expressed that the sit-in aimed to pressure the university to address racist and anti-Semitic incidents more seriously. She stated, "We feel like they haven't done enough." The first two emails contained racist and anti-Semitic content, threatening the lives of Black and Jewish students.
Students4Justice circulated fliers with a condensed version of their letter of demands, which responded to the racist fliers that had appeared on campus the previous fall. Among their demands, the organization called upon the University to express solidarity with students of color, streamline the bias incident report system, and increase African-American enrollment. They criticized the school's dedication to defending freedom of speech while showing a perceived lack of concern for student safety.
Public Health student Vikrant Garg, a core member of Students4Justice, emphasized the need for the administration to take a stand and for University President Mark Schlissel to be present and bring about actionable change. LSA senior David Schafer, president of Central Student Government, supported the students' solidarity and hoped for tangible change to ensure a more just and equitable community.
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1975 Third World Coalition Council demands
In 1975, the Third World Coalition (TWC) at the University of Michigan led a 3-day occupation of the administrative building, demanding the fulfillment of commitments made to the campus's Black Action Movement (BAM) five years earlier. The TWC was a group formed at the University of Michigan in the 1970s to establish a unified voice for black, Asian-American, Native American, and Chicano students. The occupation was organized by Sam Riddle and Oscar Hearn, both members of the BAM, in response to the University's perceived inaction on promises made following the BAM strike.
The BAM strike had occurred in early 1970, with the chief demand being that the black student population be raised to 10% by the 1973-74 academic year. The movement also demanded the hiring of a Chicano recruiter and a minimum of 50 Chicano students enrolled by the fall of 1970.
The TWC's 1975 occupation began on February 18th, with over 300 students gathering outside the administrative building. The TWC put forth a list of demands, many of which reiterated previous demands made by the BAM. However, there were six new demands, including that any grade lower than an A received by black students be nullified until there were enough black faculty members to properly evaluate black students' performance.
Despite messages of solidarity and support from outside, the TWC struggled to maintain its base, as students concerned about falling behind with schoolwork began to leave. By Thursday morning, only 150 of the original 300 students remained. The University administration, led by Robben Fleming, responded coldly to the TWC's demands, refusing to recognize the council as a negotiating body and stating that the University would not grant amnesty to the occupying students.
The occupation ended on Friday, February 21st, 1975, without any of the TWC's demands being met.
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2020 Students of Color Liberation Front demands
In April 2021, the University of Michigan's Students of Color Liberation Front (SoC LF) released a 15-page document of demands, calling on the university to take concrete steps to address and dismantle racism on campus. The coalition of racial/ethnic justice organizations made demands that fell into several categories, with the overall goal of improving the experiences of students, faculty, and staff of color on campus.
One category of demands was increasing staff for students of colour in key support areas, such as Counseling and Psychological Services, particularly for Indigenous, LGBTQ+, and/or undocumented students. They also asked for Indigenous People's Day to be recognized as a university holiday, and for the abolition of the Office of Enrollment Management's 40-day clause for in-state tuition.
The SoC LF also made demands regarding academics, asking the university to decolonize its curriculum, reassess the Race and Ethnicity requirement, and provide more support for faculty of colour. They also asked that student leaders from SoC LF member organizations be able to recommend candidates to fill administrative positions, particularly those impacting students of colour.
The statement also called on the university to support the leadership of racial justice organizations on campus, including providing funding for board members and other sustainable funding models, particularly for the Arab Student Association.
Other demands included mandating that Student Legal Services provide training for Arab/Palestine student activists, and that the university commit to transparency regarding secret societies' access to administrative resources.
The University of Michigan has seen several other instances of Black student demands and protests over the years, including the Black Action Movement protests of 1969-1970, 1975, and 2014, and the occupation of the Michigan Union by student organization Students4Justice in 2017.
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Frequently asked questions
In 1969, Black student organizations demanded that the University of Michigan increase integration on campus.
The University of Michigan accepted the goal of increasing Black student enrollment to 10% by 1973.
The 2014 Black Student Union rally at the University of Michigan had seven demands, including a new Trotter Multicultural Center in a more accessible location, better representation for Black students, and more affordable housing options.
In 2017, Students4Justice demanded the creation of an activist space on campus for students of color to organize for social justice.
