A new student coalition, New BLAC, aims to facilitate productive conversation on race in a safe and inclusive environment
“Ask questions. Be curious. Be respectful. Be active.”
These are the messages that Olivia Wallace, a junior studying visual anthropology and founding member of New BLAC, wants to send to Ohio University students.
New BLAC, which stands for New Black Life Action Coalition, hopes to bring more productive conversations about race and social justice to campus.
The group aims to work with both OU’s administration and students, to advocate for more diversity-related curriculums and to facilitate difficult dialogues.
“We really want to reform the institution,” Wallace said. “It’s not going to be possible to have black, brown and white people come together if there are not institutional elements to support that.”
Wallace, a former Post employee, said that in addition to helping people understand how power, privilege and oppression are institutionalized, more diversity-centered classes would give people the jargon and language to discuss these topics.
“I think it’s important to have a safe environment to teach people that linguistic code,” she said.
John Brown VI, a senior studying painting and drawing, is also a founding member of New BLAC.
“If I want to see change, I have to be the change,” he said. “Ideally, by working toward this myself, I can inspire other people to do the same thing.”
Wallace stressed that although the group is named New BLAC, people of all races and cultures are welcomed and encouraged to get involved.
“There’s obviously lots of black organizations that are very present on campus, but sometimes I think white people have a fear of going to something labeled ‘black’,” Wallace said. “They’re not sure if that space is welcome to them. We want to break down that connotation. These organizations are for everyone and black organizations want your presence as well.”
Emily Hahn, a senior studying communication sciences and disorders, said that a group like New BLAC would be helpful when having difficult conversations.
“When there’s discussions about race and different things, it can go in a way that is more argumentative,” Hahn said. “If there was a group to mediate it, then the conversation would be more productive and actually go somewhere.”
A mediating tool is exactly what Wallace said she hopes for New BLAC to be.
New BLAC will host their first summit meeting February 19 at 7 p.m. The location will be announced at a later date.
The group also has a Facebook, New BLAC, and a Twitter page, @New_BLAC.
“We want to embody solidarity in our movement,” Wallace said. “You can’t have a black movement if you’re not going to include different characters within your conversation. It’s all-inclusive.”
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