Martese Johnson discusses student activism

Martese Johnson, a senior at the University of Virginia who had to go to the emergency room after being arrested by police in March, gave a talk Wednesday about race relations and student activism on college campuses.

The Duke Ethiopian/Eritrean Student Transnational Association, Mi Gente and Duke chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People hosted Johnson to talk about his experiences regarding minority rights and advocacy. Johnson grew up on the south side of Chicago, where he witnessed violence, poverty and discrimination. He talked, however, about being able to overcome these barriers and attending Virginia. On March 18, 2015, he was slammed to the ground and bloodied while being arrested outside a bar by state Alcoholic Beverage Control officers. In the wake of this incident, Johnson has been spreading his message of awareness and student activism.

“My assault by police officers on a college campus was an injustice,” Johnson said.

Johnson described his experiences with both systematic and interpersonal racism, noting how the public school system in his community failed its students. He said he felt that his community was “hardened and disillusioned” by the hardships it was constantly facing, which resulted in a lack of action being taken to fix these issues. Johnson also talked about having to adjust his way of being to fit into the majority white culture at Virginia and about how he thought he was safe from the discrimination he faced in his former home. When the police attacked him, however, Johnson said he felt that his feeling of “sanctuary” was taken from him.

When asked how his peers responded after the incident, he noted that in many ways, his experience united his peers, but that there were racist and ignorant responses as well.

As an example, he pointed out how some students talked about his experience as if it were an anomaly—as if race relations were otherwise good at Virginia. Another anecdote he discussed was from Yik Yak months after the actual event, where false posts that he had gotten into another infraction with the police surfaced. The false posts indicated that Virginia students should not trust his innocence and painted him as a stereotype of a black male that is always causing trouble, Johnson explained.

Johnson also discussed how students can take action to combat racial injustices on campus, based on his experience.

“I heard [from Johnson] that we have to stay united,” freshman Jonathan Salazar said. “We have to be the ones that make sure that everyone is equally represented.”

When asked about the role of youth in the civil rights movement, Johnson said that youth were at the forefront of activism. This message resonated with several students.

“I really appreciated what he had to say about the power of students and student activism. I think often times we might not see the strength that we have, but we honestly are the one of the most powerful forces when it comes to reforming administration,” said sophomore Chandler Phillips, secretary of the Duke chapter of the NAACP.

Students at the event asked questions about how to deal with Duke’s recent incidents of racial prejudice on campus.

“Minorities are underrepresented here at Duke and their voices often overlooked,” Salazar said. “The administration chooses to ignore the issue as if it doesn’t exist. I think that black, Latino, all minorities, all students of color, everyone at Duke matters. When one of us is ignored, it’s an issue for all of us, not just a certain group of students.”