Page 8 ~ THE VILLAGER/February 24, 2017 THE DISPATCH www.theaustinvillager.com Guest Columnist: Trump and the Dr. Gregory J. Vincent Black Caucus

Vice President for Diversy and Community Engagement Plan to Meet for THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN Dear the First Time DDCE Community, By Lauren Victoria Burke On Monday, Febru- and fairly so that they can (NNPA Newswire Contributor) ary 13, staff at The Univer- be properly debated as a sity of Texas at Austin re- campus community. The moved numerous posters anonymous posters were from buildings across cam- inconsistent with our cam- port the incident to the of students, faculty and pus which disparaged im- pus values and counter- Campus Climate Response staff from all identities and migrants, minorities and productive to true campus Team. I would like to take backgrounds. To ensure Muslims. Although we are dialogue. this opportunity to remind the safety and the rights of a university in constant At this time, we do all that counseling services everyone on this campus, search for the truth and not know for certain if the are available through our we must join together so ardent defenders of free signs were posted by Gender and Sexuality Cen- that we can openly and speech, our campus has members of the campus ter and Multicultural En- intelligently engage in ro- The CBC, which is now at its largest no place for speech that community or by individu- gagement Center in col- bust discussions and de- membership in history, traditionally requests a targets individuals or als not affiliated with the laboration with the UT bate. meeting with the new president after the groups based on religion, university. If you do en- Counseling and Mental I look forward to fin- inauguration. Photo of CBC members taken race, ethnicity, national- counter any posters or Health Center (CMHC) and ishing the spring semester, during a press conference outside of the ity, gender, disability, stickers which call for the through the Employee As- united by our beliefs in the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. in sexual orientation or denigration of any mem- sistance Program. There is university’s core values September 2016. (Freddie Allen/AMG/NNPA) gender expression. We ber of our campus com- also a weekly meeting for that include the freedom are a campus which em- munity, witness incidents international students to seek the truth and ex- braces all dimensions of involving verbal harass- through CMHC each Fri- press it, diverse people Following a bizarre exchange with American Ur- diversity. ment based on someone’s day afternoon. and ideas and our collec- ban Radio Networks White House Correspondent April While we welcome identity or background or We are a diverse uni- tive responsibility to serve Ryan, the Congressional Black Caucus is in talks with the discussion of all ideas, are subject to such harass- versity that is extremely as a catalyst for positive President Donald Trump to set up a meeting. they must be shared freely ment yourself, please re- proud of the contributions change. First Black Crew Member to Join International

Space Station TRUMP RYAN By Shantella Y. Sherman (AFRO/NNPA Member) Trump asked, Ryan, a veteran Black journalist, if she could set up a meeting with him and the CBC, as if The National Aero- become an . NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps will be the first Ryan was an employee of the White House or a special nautics and Space Admin- While other Black as- Black crewmember to live and work on the assistant to the CBC. Ryan responded by saying, “I’m a istration (NASA) has se- tronauts have flown to the International Space Station for journalist.” lected astronaut Jeanette Space Station for brief an extended period of time. (NASA) The confusing exchange was one of several mo- Epps to join the crew of stays during the outpost’s ments at an unscheduled press conference Trump held the International Space construction, Epps will be men. jacks of all trades. It’s not at the White House on February 16. Station in 2018. Epps will the first Black “I’m a person just like a job that’s like any other.” “Since the White House has reached out in an ap- become the first Black crewmember to live and they are. I do the same While working on her propriate manner to request a meeting with the cau- crewmember to represent work on the station for an work as they do,” Epps told doctorate, Epps was a cus, I am now in discussions with them about setting the U.S. on the station. extended period of time. a group of STEM students NASA graduate student one up,” Congressional Black Caucus Chairman, Rep. The journey will mark Her journey aboard the at her Syracuse alma Researchers Project fellow, Cedric Richmond (D-La.) said in a statement after the the first time Epps has Soyuz spacecraft and stay mater, Danforth Middle authoring several journal press conference concluded. traveled to orbit, allowing at the station places her as School. “If something and conference articles During an interview on MSNBC on February 17, her to follow in the foot- the only American and fe- breaks, anyone of us will about her research. After Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said that, “Steve Bannon steps of the women who, male among a crew made have to be able to go out completing her graduate cannot be in the room,” when the CBC meets with Presi- she said, inspired her to up of mostly Russians and the door. We have to be studies, Epps worked in a dent Trump. “He’s a stone cold racist.” research lab for more than Bannon is currently the president’s chief strate- two years, co-authoring gist and served as a high-ranking executive at Breitbart multiple patents, before News, an online publication known for trafficking in being recruited by the right-wing, alternative news that Bannon himself de- Central Intelligence fined as “the platform for the alt-right.” Agency (CIA). She was a The term “alt-right” is increasingly used to describe CIA technical intelligence a new and emerging movement of racists and White officer for about seven supremacists. years before being se- Chairman Cedric Richmond (D-La.), said the fol- lected as a member of the lowing in response to President Trump’s comments re- 2009 astronaut class. garding a meeting with the Black Caucus: “Anything you don’t “President Trump has been in office for almost a know is going to be hard month and the Congressional Black Caucus — which at at first,” Epps said in a a historic 49 members is almost a fourth of the House video statement about the Democratic Caucus and represents millions of African launch. “But if you stay the Americans — did not hear from the White House until course, put the time and we introduced ourselves on Twitter after the White effort in, it will become House press conference today.” seamless eventually.” The statement continued: “For whatever reason, Epps will join veteran the letter the Congressional Black Caucus sent to then NASA astronaut Andrew President-elect Trump and incoming White House offi- Feustel at the Space Sta- cials on January 19 was not enough to get their atten- tion. On Feustel’s first tion. As the letter explained, President Trump’s ‘New long-duration mission, he Deal for Black America’ is ill-informed and insufficient served as a flight engineer and he would be wise to tap into the decades of exper- on Expedition 55, and later tise held by the Congressional Black Caucus when it as commander of Expedi- comes to addressing issues that affect African Ameri- tion 56. cans.” “Each space station The CBC, which is now at its largest membership crew brings something dif- in history, traditionally requests a meeting with the new ferent to the table, and president after the inauguration. Ironically, some of the Drew and Jeanette both meetings the CBC had with President Obama, specifi- have a lot to offer,” said cally on the topics of jobs and the challenges of Histori- Chris Cassidy, chief of the cally Black Colleges and Universities, have had tense Astronaut Office at NASA’s moments. in President Obama did not meet with the Congres- Houston, in a statement. sional Black Caucus during his first year in office. Meet- “The space station will ings between Obama and the CBC were scarce even benefit from having them though most of the members and the President were on board.” members of the same party.