Pacific Index

Pierre Morton touches on what’s being done by the university and local police to stop racism on campus

“I’m not letting this go,” assures Pierre Morton, Pacific’s vice president of the Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (EDIA). “It needs to stop.” 

Morton is referring to the racism on Pacific’s campus that rose to a level of severity within the last month. After a user posted on the anonymous app, Yik Yak, that they didn’t think there was any community for young black men on campus, other users began to turn this cry for help into a race war. “When you see someone say that they’re feeling isolated, what should have happened is that people should have rallied around this person,” Morton expresses. “But that’s not what happened.” 

What did happen, was an outbreak of online arguments through Yik Yak, and eventually real-life complications. One black student posted a photo of a branch of cotton left on their car, while the comments on Yik Yak accused different race groups of using racial slurs. The outbreak of prejudice quickly reached the ears of Pacific students, administration, local police, and multiple news stations in the surrounding area. 

“We did notify Forest Grove police. We did that through our CPS (Campus Public Safety) department,” Morton shares. “So, it’s up to them, whatever their process is, to figure out where that’s going to go.” 

When contacted by the Index, the Forest Grove detective tasked with investigating explained that the case is currently open. “Right now, it’s still an open case,” the detective said. He suspects that the case will be completed “by the end of next week,” and at that point it will be known whether or not the case found sufficient grounds for prosecution. 

CPS also has aided in finding the account information for the users on Yik Yak who used racial slurs. “Yik Yak, where these anonymous posts were posted, do have a law enforcement referral process,” adds Pacific’s Associate Director of Communications Blake Timm. “Campus Public Safety has submitted that request on behalf of the university because these posts did rise to a point that needed to be reported to the law.” While these referrals are a lengthy process, the hope is that the results will aid the investigation.  

Since the initial posts, there haven’t been any further reports; however, many students may be wondering if anything will ever really change. “We believe in first of all making certain that students know this is not who we are, and we want to educate them out of that,” Morton comments. “We want to hopefully give students an opportunity to be reunited with our community.” 

“We’re doing a sort of three-pronged process,” Morton discloses. “I, and Daniel, the executive director of EDIA, are going and speaking with students about the n-word. Where it comes from, what it means, and I personally am going to be asking them to become allies with our black students, so that word is not in their vocabulary.” 

“Number two, we are in the process of looking at a policy related to that specific word and a couple of other sorts of derogatory words,” continues Morton. This policy will ensure students are educated on the historical origins and modern connotations of hate speech and derogatory terms. 

“We’ve also been working with the Black Alumni Association,” informs Morton. The Black Alumni Association has been a major support according to Morton, and he suspects they will continue to be moving forward. “They put their arms around our black students,” Morton reflects emotionally. “They talked about their own stories growing up…Here was the kicker: the students finally felt that they weren’t alone.” 

While awaiting updates concerning the open investigation and the Yik Yak referral, Pacific is still putting their efforts into making all students feel safe and supported. Timm urged students to keep a watchful eye on their peers now more than ever. “The Office of Student Support has a care referral process,” he offers. “It’s a process where, if students are concerned about others, then they can help confidentially.” This form can be filled out in concern for the mental health of students, for students who have experienced racism, or any other reason that feels in need of attention. 

“It’s important that the relationships we have here come with a sense of what I call the beloved community,” Morton conveys. “Meaning that there is a community that stands up for each other.” 

Any updates before the Index’s next issue regarding the police investigation will be reported online.