Above Photo: Student protesters in Howard’s administration building during the sit-in. (Photo/Feranami Quadri, The Hilltop)
The the longest student sit-in at Howard University which mirrored protests by students in 1968 came to end after nine days. After lengthy negotiations the students and university came to a series of agreements.
After nine days of occupying Howard University’s administration building, student protesters ended their sit-in after administrators and student organizers agreed on a way forward for some of the students.
A press conference was held by the university’s board of trustees to share a statement of commitments to the Howard University community that included some of the demands that #HUResist wanted when they took over the building at the end of March.
Board of Trustees Chairman, Stacey J. Mobley released a statement letter to the Howard University community affirming the end of the nine day sit-in and next steps.
“As all of us are aware, Howard University has a long history of healthy debate and discourse on our campus and it’s a tradition we fully support. We want to continue to encourage dialogue and we are committed to providing a safe space for all voices to feel comfortable to speak freely,” Mobley stated in the statement.
Earlier in the day, HU Resist posted to Twitter saying they would no longer call for the resignation of President Frederick and the Board of Trustees, two demands that they first said were non-negotiable. Prior to the announcement, #HUResist alongside the 57th Administration of Howard University’s Student Government Association were in negotiations with the Board of Trustees since March 30.
The student sit-in followed the announcement of accusations of financial aid embezzlement with the University were revealed in an Medium post (since been deleted) by the author of the name of “Veritas 1867” on the evening of March 27. The following day on March 28, the revelations were confirmed by President Wayne Frederick through a statement to the University of some of the claims and his prior knowledge of the embezzlement.
There have been 8 days of negotiations, and we have been deliberating ways in which we can recenter our cause around the overall improvement of our institution instead of the elimination of one figure.That being said,we are no longer calling for the resignation of the president &
— #StudentPowerHU (@HUResist) April 6, 2018
News crews get ready to hear the results outside the administration building. University Provost Wutoh among those in the crowd waiting to hear the announcements. pic.twitter.com/HuJrMpBtFS
— Kyra E. Azore (@KyraAzore) April 6, 2018
Students cheering as the leaders return from the meeting with signed negotiations pic.twitter.com/dWdrTUkllQ
— Kyra E. Azore (@KyraAzore) April 6, 2018
UPDATE: these are the eight demands that the university and the students agreed upon. The ninth demand calling for the immediate resignation of the university president and board of trustees was relented by students earlier this morning. pic.twitter.com/Mt8CGoOd6d
— Kyra E. Azore (@KyraAzore) April 7, 2018
“We took over an entire administration building, all six floors. We did that!” – Zephaniah Galloway, reacts to the end of @HowardU student sit-in. Reporting by @KyraAzore #HUResist #StudentPowerHU #HBCU #HowardU pic.twitter.com/WtJz7Iosdt
— youthradio (@youthradio) April 6, 2018
It’s been 9 long days but we finally did it. We remade Howard. Our love for each other, black people, and the cause is what brought us to the finish line. Thank you to everyone who supported or helped us during this time. Long live the Kwame Ture Student Center #StudentPowerHU pic.twitter.com/6gi8SqhM9X
— #StudentPowerHU (@amouree_) April 7, 2018