ACLU of Oklahoma Issues Statement on OU Fraternity Closure After Racist Chant on Anniversary of Selma March

March 9, 2015

OKLAHOMA CITY – Following this weekend’s news of members of the University of Oklahoma’s Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity chanting about lynching African Americans, and the investigative and disciplinary actions in progress, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma as released the following statements:

The following is attributable to Ryan Kiesel, ACLU of Oklahoma Executive Director:

Sixty-six years ago and after two trips to the United States Supreme Court, Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher became the first African American student to be admitted to the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Even after her admission, she was still segregated from her white peers. With a legal team that included Thurgood Marshall, her case played a critical role in the end of the separate but equal doctrine. As monumental as that victory may have been, the video showing SAE fraternity members at the University of Oklahoma singing a disgraceful racist chant serves as a stark reminder that racism is very much a present reality.

We offer our sincere appreciation to the students, faculty and staff who have joined together in solidarity against hate and racism. They remind us that the spark in Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher still persists in the minds of those who benefitted from her work. Let history say the same of us. At the very least, this awful incident must prompt a robust conversation and a review of every aspect of campus life so that we can combat persistent discrimination and realize racial justice. And as the fates of the students at the center of this controversy unfold, we encourage the administration to demonstrate their commitment to due process; for it is often in protecting the rights of the very worst, we are able to demonstrate our fullest commitment to justice.

The following is attributable to Brady Henderson, ACLU of Oklahoma Legal Director:

We join with OU President David Boren, as well as the majority of OU students, faculty, and alumni, and with an overwhelming number of Oklahomans in their disgust at SAE’s conduct this past Saturday night. While many Americans paused this weekend to reflect on the 50th Anniversary of Martin Luther King’s famous march in Selma, Alabama, these students marked the occasion by mocking one of the saddest chapters of American history, the mob-fueled, government-sanctioned murder of African Americans. These students remind us that despite King’s victory in Selma, and other battles won by countless citizens with the courage to face hate head-on, racism is not dead or even dormant in modern America, even on our college campuses.

We applaud President Boren’s aggressive response to the SAE’s actions, and we encourage the OU administration to be equally aggressive in ensuring that the due process rights of students remain protected throughout any disciplinary processes against Fraternity members. The deep-rooted problem of racism will not be solved by discipline alone, but by open and honest dialogue and an accounting of where we are and where we need to go not just in our universities, but in the communities university students will one day lead.