BAM 2.0, administrators meet for second time, make progress on ODA demands

Miami administrators met with Black Action Movement (BAM) 2.0 leaders April 20 in second closed-door, Friday-morning meeting.

The activist members of BAM 2.0 organized themselves in mid-March after a controversy surrounding a racial slur used by a Miami student on social media resurfaced.

Since then, BAM 2.0 staged several demonstrations and has pushed the university to address a list of demands that includes building new space for the Office of Diversity Affairs (ODA), better mandatory education for students on diversity and race and more intense recruitment efforts for prospective diverse students.

Vice President for Student Affairs Jayne Brownell and BAM 2.0 spokesperson Josiah Collins, both of whom attended the session, said it was productive: education, space, easier bias reporting and a system for communicating regular updates were all discussed.

Rather than building an entirely new structure, the ODA might move into a larger space in the east wing of Armstrong, potentially over Summer 2019, said Brownell, though other options are still being considered.

For the rest of semester, BAM 2.0 plans to shift its focus to building its ranks and developing relationships with its allies, said Collins.

"We're just trying to make sure we are building each other up in the community and not focusing so much on the administration and more on the students for the rest of the semester."

evansjm4@miamioh.edu

Visit miamistudent.net for ongoing coverage of BAM 2.0 and activism on Miami's campus.