By Eagle Newswire
Norman, Okla.— Another University of Oklahoma professor, Kathleen Brosnan, used a racial slur in class, the school’s interim president said, marking the second time in less than two weeks that a faculty member used offensive language in the classroom.
Interim President Joseph Harroz Jr. said Monday a history professor, whom he didn’t name, read from a historical document that used the N-word repeatedly. Harroz said the professor gave a “trigger warning” letting students know what she was about to say, but he said that didn’t excuse her behavior.
“For students in the class, as well as members of our community, this was another painful experience,” Harroz said in a letter. “It is common sense to avoid uttering the most offensive word in the English language, especially in an environment where the speaker holds the power.”
A group of University of Oklahoma students announced Wednesday that they are going on a hunger strike to demand actions after recent, separate incidents involving professors using a racial slur during class.
Earlier this month, an OU journalism professor, Peter Gade, stepped down from teaching the course for the rest of the semester after telling students during class that the N-word is no more offensive than the term “boomer.”
Following that professor’s actions, Harroz said that all faculty and staff would be required to attend diversity and racial sensitivity training.
“While it is unfortunate that another incident would occur before we could roll out this action plan, we are resolute in addressing these matters with decisive action,” the letter said.
Members of OU’s Black Emergency Response Team gathered for a rally at 8 a.m. Wednesday at Evans Hall. During the rally, students announced that they will go on a hunger strike until their demands are fully met.
They aren’t moving until their demands are met. Those demands include a semester long diversity training class for all students, a multicultural center, and mandatory diversity training for faculty. They also want provost Kyle Harper immediately to resign. They say they are not going to budge until then they will be inside, regardless if they have to sleep there all night or not.
