Remember that terrible, terrible UConn student who felt so drunkenly entitled to jalapeno mac and cheese that he assaulted a cafeteria worker and ended up getting arrested? It sounds like his brother–at least in spirit–might be enrolled at Towson University.
According to an article in the Towson Towerlight, the student–a white male who goes unnamed in the report–has allegedly been causing trouble for a while, using the n-word and other racial slurs. Then, earlier this month, tensions came to a head when he yelled at a black female worker when she repeated his order back to him, saying (per the worker), “Your people don’t know how to listen.” Then he threw his money at her and walked away.
Based on previous bad encounters with the student, the cafeteria supervisor told his employees not to serve the young man anymore. When he came back to the cafeteria the next morning and was told he wouldn’t be served, he became (predictably) irate. He told the cafeteria workers that he “had something for them” and began rifling through his backpack. But ultimately, he left without incident.
The student has also been reported for being abusive to a library staff member on at least three separate occasions, including one in which he allegedly told a student assistant, “You know, I have dreams of hurting you people.”
Several cafeteria workers told the Towerlight that they’ve felt unsafe ever since the early April incident. Due to student privacy laws, it’s unclear what sort of sanction the student might face for his behavior.
Towson has had a tricky time recently dealing with issues of free speech while also maintaining a safe and respectful campus; the founder of the infamous White Student Union may have graduated, but it seems as though his legacy might be living on after him.
I disagree. Would you judge an entire race of people based on one person’s behavior, especially if that person’s behavior stems from mental issues? From the details of your article, this man sounds like he’s having some serious psychological issues. Often times, people with these disabilities ramble hate speech and threats in public. He needs to be removed from campus and get help. Growing up, there was a family in my neighborhood who had a schizophrenic son who sometimes wandered around when he went off his medication. We used to hear him say the craziest (and scariest) things. This “white” man as you report sounds a lot like this. And, by the way, since we are talking about judging a whole race on a few bad apples, it is definitely no help to anyone to constantly be bombarded with “news” stories of racial tensions. These types of articles (including yours) are irresponsible. It’s time you started reporting on the progress we’ve made and the countless positive events going on every day at Towson University between people of all races rather than this type of journalism that you espouse.
I agree. Calling a person “white” these days is like a slur in itself. “White” is a loaded word, conjuring images of slave owners, colonialism, wealth, superiority etc. “People of no color” needs to be adopted so that the historical implications of calling a person “white” will disappear into history.