The week of Sept. 19 was a rough one. There was the release of video showing the murder of Terence Crutcher in Tulsa; the murder of Keith Scott in Charlotte, and the days of protests that followed; the indictment of a Tulsa police officer for manslaughter in Crutcher’s death; and the death of a Charlotte protestor and the conflicting stories of who killed him. So, in a general statement of solidarity, the student government association along with the University of Vermont’s administration hoisted a flag. Three little words in white writing on a black background: Black Lives Matter. The flag was raised alongside the American flag and the state flag of Vermont. The purpose was:
“ ...to show support for those “struggling with the violence and search for justice in this country.”
Sophomore Akilah Ho-Young could hardly contain her excitement.
“I wanted to cry when I saw this,” Ho-Young said in a Sept. 22 Facebook post that included a picture of the Black Lives Matter flag flying outside the student center, alongside the American and state flags.
“My body filled with lots of joy to know that my predominantly white university is paying tribute to the deaths in the black community,” she said. “It’s the littlest thing that just means so much to me!”
Not surprisingly, the flag’s appearance on campus generated a lot of hateration. Also not surprisingly, the flag disappeared a few days after its appearance:
Then, at some point late Saturday or early Sunday, someone took the flag down. A picture of the crank on the flagpole suggested someone had pried it open, lowered the flag and stolen it, [Student Government Association President Jason] Maulucci said.
By Sunday afternoon, however, a new flag had been hoisted in its place, sewn together by Pat Brown, the university’s director of student life, according to Maulucci.
“It was upsetting that someone stole it, but I think it underscored the necessity for raising in the first place,” Maulucci said. “We’re proud of the fact that we’re contributing to that conversation. You can’t make progress unless you acknowledge that there’s a problem.”
The new flag has “Black Lives Matter” in white letters on a black square, and the black square is on a background of red, black, and green.
That should go over even better than the first flag!