‘We will be back’

Students from Southern University-New Orleans held a town hall meeting Wednesday to express their concerns about a staff editorial published in the Oct. 17 issue of The Advocate, a daily newspaper in Baton Rouge.
The editorial suggested against the rebuilding of SUNO. Most of the university sustained major flooding damage — up to the second floor in some buildings — after a levee breached during and after Hurricane Katrina.
“SUNO only exists because of the evils of segregation and that it just doesn’t make sense to rebuild failure,” the editorial said.
Avis White, student government president of SUNO, expressed her displeasure with the column before an audience of approximately 150 students and faculty in Lawless Auditorium in W.W. Stewart Hall. White, a senior from Vacherie, said letters should be written to the newspaper to emphasize their outrage and utter frustration caused by the article.
“We need to inform them that these comments are false, insulting and unappreciated,” White said. “SUNO serves a non-traditional population that no other college does. We need to notify them that we are displaced, not destroyed and we will be back.”
Some students in attendance supported White’s mission and suggested mailing the papers back to the publisher, Douglas Manship Jr. Some suggested a protest in front of the newspaper’s main office near Bluebonnet Boulevard.
Though most of the students in attendance were disappointed by the editorial, some said more support was needed to correct the matter. Angela Sanders, a graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in social work from SUNO, said students from everywhere should get together to fight.
“SUNO appreciates all the help from the Baton Rouge campus, but more students and administration need to show support to combat the deception of The Advocate,” Sanders said.
According to former SUNO Chancellor Joseph Bowie, who is now a professor at the college, The Advocate published a similar article about Southern University 20 years ago and the newspaper is always out to destroy black institutions.
“The comments made about SUNO are completely false,” Bowie said. “We have 90 percent of our programs accredited and graduated over 14,000 students with a large number of those being accepted into graduate school.”
Bowie also said the existence of SUNO is about opportunity and reaching out to lower income students who don’t have the chance to go to institutions outside of New Orleans.
Other students and faculty said actions were needed to ensure the reputation of the university is not tainted and to inform everyone that SUNO plans to rebuild and open stronger and better than before.
The Southern University System Board of Supervisors has scheduled a press conference to respond to the editorial.
The conference will be held at noon in the board’s meeting room on the second floor of J.S. Clark Administration Building. According to a press release by Robin Merrick, system director of public affairs, many of the system’s administration, faculty, students and alumni will are scheduled to be present at the event.
Thursday, during a “Rebuilding New Orleans” rally at New Light Missionary Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, PUSH founder Rev. Jesse Jackson said no one should consider the closing of historically black colleges in New Orleans.
“You cannot put the rebuilding of a casino before the rebuilding of a university,” Jackson said, referring to the demand by state legislators for a gaming resurrection in New Orleans.