What happened at the Brown Latinx Conference, by someone who was there

When our Harvard delegation headed to Brown this past weekend for the 2015 Latinx Ivy League Conference, we were expecting a day of workshops, networking, and keynote speakers meant to facilitate bonds between our Latinx peers and strengthen our community.

Instead, we found ourselves in a whirlwind of mobilization after an incident in which Latino Dartmouth delegate Geovanni Cuevas faced excessive police force. In his own words:

“I spoke up and told the officer that I felt the way he was touching the [drunk Brown] student was inappropriate. [The two SAO-hired officers] told me that if I did not shut up and listen to them, that I would be arrested…

“[O]ther students were uncomfortable with the altercation; I removed myself from the situation and left.

“Unfortunately I was being hosted at Machado. I did return to my room, but ventured downstairs to the party to find my host…

“[Security] found me in the laundry room next to the dance floor, slammed me against the wall and slammed me to the ground. Meanwhile they accused me of resisting when I wasn’t and scraped my face and chin.

“I was then detained outside of Machado until Brown students could verify my identity and the security officers finally let me go.”

Geovanni Cuevas, the Dartmouth delegate, on the day he gave his statement to the conference. The scratch on his face is from his incident with the police.

Geovanni Cuevas. The scratch on his face is from his incident with the police. Photo credit: Rudy Martin, Brown University

To say we were shocked is an understatement.

We could not, and should not, have expected a guest of the college to be treated with such disrespect and violence. Immediately, those workshops and networking events were cancelled for the more pressing issue at hand.

We instead spoke with Brown’s President Paxson and the Chief of Police for the Department of Public Safety Mark Porter, and many, myself included, felt disappointed with the initial response from both figures.

The Latinx delegations at the conference also collectively created a list of demands we have for our respective institutions to address issues of institutional racism on campus.

Our Harvard delegation is planning to discuss these demands to President Faust on Thursday 11/19 to ask for an appropriate response because, as of right now, there has been no response from her, even as presidents from other Ivies have already responded.

This incident comes at a time where myriad campuses have been mobilizing to address issues of institutional racism on their campuses.

This racism is not new, nor can these protest movements be pinpointed to a singular incident.

I am distraught at horrendous threats and acts against my brothers and sisters at various institutions, and I am outraged that administrations are not addressing our grievances.

The commotion at Mizzou, Yale, Claremont McKenna, Howard, Ithaca, Amherst, Dartmouth, and now Kean, to mention a few of many institutions, is not isolated.

The 2015 Latinx Ivy League Conference delegates. Photo credit: Brown Center for Students of Color

It is time for administrations to critically take a step back and look at the policies of their institution. We are on campuses which were not designed for us, but we demand that they listen to our cries if they want to be truly inclusive.

We have been silent for too long.

Not anymore.

Check out our coverage on our sister site at The Tab Brown.