FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 20, 2011

UDems Contact: Andr Treiber Treiber.Andre@gmail.com 832.377.9661 BSA Contact: Ashley Robinson BSA Email: AMR2974@utexas.edu 254.371.4921

UT University Democrats and Black Student Alliance Respond to Offensive Tweets Austin, TX The University Democrats and the Black Student Alliance at the University of Texas are disappointed to see offensive remarks on Twitter by the president of the College Republicans, Cassandra Wright, remain unresolved. On December 18, Ms. Wright tweeted the following: My presidents black, he snorts a lot of crack. Holla. #2012 #Obama. Since then, she has not only failed to apologize, but has also publicly defended her statement. Someone in such a position cannot make comments such as these; it seriously undermines the healthy political dialogue that the University of Texas tries to promote among students. Beyond that, by refusing to retract and apologize for her statement, Ms. Wright appears to be condoning this blatant racism. Furthermore, inaction by the College Republicans sets a precedent that their organization tolerates these acts, as well. The University Democrats and the Black Student Alliance together stand strong against such offensive behavior. The message we want to send is that situations like this are not ok, no matter how small or harmless the action may seem. Comments such as this tweet and other racially insensitive instances on campus take us a step back, rather than progress UT forward to a more respectful campus climate, which we have obviously not yet achieved, says 2012 BSA President, Ashley Robinson. Ms. Wrights tweet was inappropriate and unfortunate due to its racist nature and blatant disrespect for the President of the United States. says Huey Fischer, President-elect of the University Democrats. We hope the College Republicans will get their act together so that we may renew a strong relationship between our two clubs. I hope Cassie takes a moment to reflect upon her harmful rhetoric and apologizes. We have to realize that we are not just ordinary students but leaders that are a reflection of the university and remarks like these should be unacceptable. We have pride in diversity, and insensitive remarks without any apologies clearly sends the world the wrong message. As a leader on campus, I try to represent my university, my organization, and myself in a way that is acceptable, and bashing my President with stereotypical comments is not one of those things, says Cortney Sanders, Political Action Chair of BSA. "Had she apologized for her remarks, maybe we could have moved past this mistake. But since Ms. Wright chose to go on the offensive, we were left with no choice but to call out her actions," says Andr Treiber, Communications Director for the University Democrats.
The University Democrats is the oldest and largest political organization at the University of Texas. The role and mission of UDems is to advance progressive causes on campus, campaign for Democrats in the community, and promote student engagement in politics. For more information about the UDems, please visit udems.org The Black Student Alliance strives to be the political voice of the African -American community at the University of Texas. The primary mission of BSA is to uplift and empower the African American community through academic improvement, social involvement, and political action and awareness.
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