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U of Michigan students walk out of class to protest racism on campus

Posted at 10:28 AM, Sep 25, 2017
and last updated 2017-09-25 18:31:12-04

As part of a week-long movement to rally against racism on campus, hundreds of students at the University of Michigan staged a walkout Monday morning.

The students filled Fletcher Street and tried to slow down the bus system. They said it was an effort to show the inconvenience the minority black student population has felt while trying to get an education.

Last week, somebody wrote the N-word under the name tag of three black students.
Travon Stearns was one of three black students targeted last Sunday.

Last year, Stearns was featured on WXYZ's Person on the Week as a standout student who worked full-time while attending Osborn High School and earning a full scholarship to the University of Michigan.

Stearns said his day, which he planned to use for study and preparation for the week, was inconvenienced to deal with the fallout.

“We’re out here to show that I was inconvenienced for a day. I wasn’t able to study so we’re going to be out here for an hour, a few hours … just to see what it feels like to be inconvenienced,” he said.
Flyers that called for a week of "action against anti-blackness and other forms of racism" have been circulating campus.

“Us as black students, we do not feel that we are welcome here," said Sophomore Nando Felten, who added that the black population at University of Michigan was only 4 percent.

There are events scheduled for the rest of the week, including one at the Diag Tuesday at 5pm.