>
The University of Southern California Black Student Union invited students to a free private screening of the recently released Wakanda Forever, but asked white students not to attend.
A post on the BSU’s Instagram page included two images for Wednesday’s event, which was described as a “black centered” activity that ideally would not include other races – meaning it was potentially illegal.
“We lovingly curate this space to support and affirm black people and black joy. We are asking our non-black allies to support our intent to create a black affinity and party space,” the post’s description of the event reads.
The screening of the highly anticipated Black Panther sequel took place at the local Santa Barbara Arlington Theater.
UCSB Media Relations Manager Kiki Reyes told the College Fix that members of BSU had not informed the school that the event would be segregated.
“This screening is organized by local off-campus organizations, and the link you sent is just BSU inviting its members to attend. We have been informed that the event is open and no student or community member will be barred from registering or participating,” Reyes said in an email to the outlet.
But the tone of the flyer for the event makes it clear that white students would not be welcome, leading to claims that the union was secretly trying to exclude them.
The BSU invites black students to register for free tickets to the screening of the film. It specifically asks non-black students not to attend
The University of California at Santa Barbara is a West Coast state school funded directly by the state of California taxpayers
The 2019 Marvel film Black Panther and its long-awaited sequel became moments of specific cultural significance to the black community
In temporary stories posted on BSU’s Instagram page Wednesday night, it appeared that the club had chartered a party bus to transport the students from the school to the cinema.
Those videos exclusively showed students of color dancing on the party bus on their way to the movies.
Wakanda Forever is the highly anticipated sequel to 2018’s Black Panther, a Marvel movie that follows the stories of the leaders of a fictional region of Africa called Wakanda.
The original film and its sequel became moments of specific cultural significance to the black community.
It is unclear how much university funding is used to support the school’s Black Student Union. While most officially affiliated student clubs on a given college campus are eligible for funding.
UCSB does have an Office of Black Student Development, which aims to employ at least eight full-time staffers “who work to support UCSB’s black undergraduate and graduate student population.”
The office describes itself as “an affirmative response to Black Student Union demands dating back to 1968, and most recently through the 2013 and 2019 BSU demands.”
UCSB is a state-run university, which means that California residents’ tax dollars directly fund the school and its many programs.
Santa Barbara isn’t the only college campus to engage in racially preferential or segregated events surrounding the release of Wakanda Forever
The film, like its predecessor, revolves around life and power struggles in the fictionalized, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda.
This week’s Santa Barbara incident isn’t the first instance of racially preferential behavior on a college campus revolving around Wakanda Forever this month.
Last week, the Stanford University Graduate Student Council announced it has 450 tickets for a November 10 screening of Wakanda Forever, 100 of which it has reserved for black students.
Black students were also given priority when registering for the bus to the cinema.
The Stanford Review initially reported on the issue, writing that the event traced back to the Jim Crow South.
Does discrimination in cinemas and buses sound like a family? Yes, that’s right… It was common in Jim Crow South.
“The GSC is committed to reducing prejudice in entertainment and transit, presumably under the guise of anti-racism, equality and inclusion, the GSC actively discriminates against non-black students,” it read. the piece.
The review also pointed out the issue of funding for breed-specific or segregated activities.
‘Where does the GSC get funding for all these activities? They oversee the distribution of the fee for graduate student activities, which is $141 per year for each graduate student.
‘The GSC literally uses part of the tuition fees for graduates to discriminate against 96% of the graduate population,’ wrote Review staff.
Four percent of Stanford’s graduate school population is black.