Posted June 12, 2020
Top graphic by Jason Porter.
To SJMC students and alumni:
While physically distanced from each other and our students, we are reminded by current events of our shared values and privilege as faculty and staff of a journalism school at a state flagship university in South Carolina.
Students come from various backgrounds, some more privileged than others. The legacy of white supremacy has damaged the lives of many, especially our black students, who may have feared speaking their truth.
We support all of you who find yourselves in the middle of conflicts over justice and equality.
We say to all SJMC students and alumni who are feeling isolated, alone and upset, especially our students of color, your advisors and teachers are committed to listening openly. Black lives matter.
We are inspired by these words of African American journalist Ida B. Wells, a posthumous recipient of a 2020 Pulitzer Prize for her reporting about violence against black people during the era of lynching: “The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them.”
As we try to uphold and convey this truth in teaching you to become professional communicators, so too we also apply it reflexively to ourselves.
We welcome suggestions to better support you now and in the future. We are still learning, and we promise that we will continue.
The Faculty and Staff of the School of Journalism and Mass Communications
|
Rachel Acosta
|
Patty Hall |
Carol J. Pardun |