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As freshmen at Syracuse University, students may only learn briefly about the Syracuse 8 or #NotAgainSU in the First Year Seminar class. Maybe if the instructor feels passionate, they present more about the topic. This part of the curriculum gives the subtle impression that SU cares deeply about its students using their voices to fight for their beliefs and that the institution will fully support this constitutionally-supported action.

But what’s not shared is that the Syracuse 8 experienced backlash at the time from both the university and campus community alike. The group of football players’ move to boycott the school’s games resulted in suspension from following games, hindering their careers in the sport. While this sacrifice benefited generations of Black student-athletes succeeding them, it wasn’t an achievement that came overnight or with low cost.

The university’s selective presentation of these events raises critical questions about how higher education institutions frame their relationship with student activism. What does it mean for students to be presented with a version of history that contradicts what truly happened?

This selective framing risks undermining the lessons of perseverance, struggle and institutional change, replacing them with a palatable story that ultimately serves the university’s own image. For incoming undergraduates, grappling with this contradiction is essential to truly understanding the complexities of activism and the cost of breaking barriers.

In 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech outside of Sims Hall titled, “The Role of Education in the Civil Rights Movement.” A copy of this speech is available in the SU Library archives. He shares with listeners they can’t depend on American institutions to function without facing pressure and being held accountable.

When we honor King, we must recognize these same complexities he faced during the era of segregation. For the time, his visions of equality were far more radical than the messages we observe today, which call not only for harmony but for further systemic transformation.

We memorialize a man who is said to have been beloved by all Americans and sought to accomplish his goals strictly through peaceful action. But when we reflect on history’s truth, we find that he was widely hated by Americans toward the end of his life. Though his open criticisms were finally more widely accepted posthumously, it’s vital to acknowledge his initiative and remember his foresight into the power behind peaceful protest of the status quo.

On one hand, the university praises #NotAgainSU’s activism, often highlighting it as an example of students’ voices being heard. Yet, some protesters participating in the Gaza Solidarity Encampment this past spring faced conduct charges. The institution must treat these, albeit different, peaceful assemblies with the unique attention and respect they deserve. Both assemblies sought justice, raised awareness of critical issues and demonstrated the power of collective action.

Speaking with people on campus, they feel these very actions show the university does not hold space for Black scholars.

“There should be way more conversations and attention on it, which I feel there is not this year at all,” Karen Ivy, an SU pre-law senior, said. “Falling short hurts Black students because it reinforces how little celebrating Black legacies, excellence and resurgence means to the university as a whole.”

The ignorance in institutional responses raises questions about whose activism is deemed acceptable and why. It paints a picture to students that they are allowed freedom of speech — as long as it’s what the university deems approvable.

It’s also alarming to think that the university hasn’t addressed the state of the African American Studies department.

“It’s ironic to me how each year this school sets up a dinner and speeches for MLK Day and emails us about how to honor and reflect on the work of Martin Luther King Jr., and yet we have an African American Studies Department that is receiving inadequate resources and aid to help support the students,” Bailey Snead, an SU junior, said.

These inconsistencies highlight the importance of scrutinizing institutional narratives and behaviors. We must encourage people to push beyond public relational facades and challenge the systems that pick and choose which struggles deserve recognition. Students should fight the curated stories they are told and demand transparency about the struggles and sacrifices behind lasting, influential movements.

Attend forums, speak out at university meetings and demand no less than equitable treatment and reception for all forms of activism on campus, whether they align with institutional priorities or not.

Explore the university library’s archives, educate yourself where others fail to do so and reclaim the chronicles that have been sanitized or suppressed. The lessons we learn from leaders like King demonstrate that meaningful progress is made through persistence and a willingness to push power structures toward inclusive change.

Sarhia Rahim is a senior policy studies major. Her column appears bi-weekly. She can be reached at slrahim@syr.edu.

Published on January 20, 2025 at 6:54 pm