The #RemoveRohini debate will come to head in a Town Hall on Tuesday

A campaign to remove Student Body Vice President, Rohini Seth, has gone viral, after she posted a status on her personal Facebook this weekend  saying, “Forget #BlackLivesMatter, more like #AllLivesMatter”.

A Town Hall is being held on Tuesday to decide her fate after she yesterday issued an apology – but her ‘apology’ has not been well received, to say the least.

Of course, the statement has caused anger particularly among black members of the UH community, and rightfully so. Hearing “Forget #BlackLivesMatter” from anyone, let alone a major student body representative, is cause for concern. Twitter and Facebook very quickly became flooded with UH students rallying behind a hashtag calling for Sethi’s impeachment: #RemoveRohini.

She has since issued the following apology.

“As Student Body Vice President, I was elected to represent the voice of every single one of you. When I took this position, my intention was and still is to advocate for you and make you feel heard… Thursday night as our national recoiled in shock, I took to Facebook and shared in a way that was inappropriate given the context and my position… My response has caused enormous pain for many members of our community, and I think it’s high time that I clarify my statement. Visually we are black, white, tan, and a hundred shades between but we are all human, thus I believe all lives matter… We are stronger working together. We achieve our greatest potential through conversation. Let’s create the possibility of a culture rooted in open discussion.”

She ended her statement with the hashtag, #LetsTalkUnity

In addition to Sethi’s statement, SGA has also released a statement avowing their commitment to diversity and unity. There is also a town hall meeting to be held where members of the Cougar community can engage in open discussion about the events that have taken place, as well as have their voices and opinions heard regarding racial inclusion on campus.

Many students found the SGA Vice President’s response to be lacking in the way of a legitimate apology, claiming that she apologized not for her remarks, but rather for the notion that people misunderstood them. Student leader Myles Parnell released an emphatic open letter to Rohini, writing the following.

“Today you issued a statement, not an apology, where you attempted to clarify what you said which you ended with the hashtag ‘‪#‎LetsTalkUnity‬.’ And I am definitely down to talk unity, but first I need to explain to you why I and the rest of the black community at UH will not overlook this transgression and simply move forward.”

Myles continued to discuss how his intention is not to get Sethi kicked out of office, but rather to help her understand the issues with her remarks and why they are divisive and ignorant. Overall, he encourages kind, open discussion that can spread awareness about the systemic inequalities black Americans face without remarking that UH ought to #RemoveRohini. His full post can be read here.

Other students, however, had a different idea.

The uproar is certainly warranted, but many students believe that rallying behind #RemoveRohini is dangerous and divisive.

Davis Darusman, student at UH, said the following.

“I don’t think these #RemoveRohini ‘hashtag-activists’ should be seen as the sole point of victimization when you have somebody being bullied into resignation for her opinion, which at this point seems to be part of a modern ‘silent majority.’ Most people don’t want progress, they want the chaos that comes with her resignation, which accomplishes absolutely nothing.”

Davis continued to explain that the most important goal should be to educate Rohini and any of her sympathizers as to the inequalities faced by African Americans. While he agrees that Sethi’s initial comment was absolutely ignorant, he also believes that the solution to that ignorance is mutual understanding rather than direct punishment.

Zachary Burton, in a separate Facebook comment on a UH class page, follows up on this idea when responding to a leading #RemoveRohini advocate.

“I admire your desire to stand up for what you believe and take on all the negativity but some of these people are right in the sense that you look super aggressive whether you mean to be or not, and to someone who is not versed on the topics, that can be incredibly stand-offish. I’ve been reading these arguments for the last few days and I think you have a right to be angry, but the approach is a bit overly-ferocious.”

In his comment, Burton describes a very particular problem. Most individuals don’t directly understand the systemic problems inherent in black communities, and reacting to Sethi’s comments with a divisive hashtag isn’t going to help garner discourse and solve issues in the long run.

And so, America’s stagnant discussion surrounding the social movement against racial injustice has become epitomized at the University of Houston. On one hand, we have a Student Body Vice President who has discredited the plight of persons of color in America.

On the other hand, student supporters of BLM have varying responses. The students rallying behind #RemoveRohini seem to want quick, decisive action that, as students such as Davis Darusman believe, will create a destructive short term solution to a long term problem. Other BLM Supporters, such as Myles Parnell, believe that Rohini’s actions should not be excused, but should be used as an opportunity for the black community on campus to extend an olive branch and explain why #AllLivesMatter is not an appropriate response to #BlackLivesMatter.

The truth is that #RemoveRohini is the easy  but ineffective way to solve this problem, just like #AllLivesMatter is a lazy way to get out of taking the time to understand the suffering of black Americans.  The Town Hall (which requires a UH ID to attend)  presents a unique opportunity for calm, open minded discussion that can help Rohini and her sympathizers see the error in their ways, and also give BLM supporters a chance to find new ways to promote unity and solidarity for the black experience.

The conversation might be circular in the rest of the country, but let UH be a shining example for why a community can work together to end divisiveness.

#BlackLivesMatter