Protests have played a significant role in shaping what San José State is today; many of which included activism from one of the smallest communities on campus.
Despite being only 3.3% of the population at San José State, according to the university’s webpage, the Black community has had multiple demonstrations of activism on campus that made a lasting impact on the university.
Regarding the Civil Rights Movement, William McCraw, a professor emeritus of political science, recalls that SJSU recruited students to help voters in the South register after the Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed.
The act, signed by former President Lyndon B. Johnson, allowed Black people to vote freely, eliminating the states’ will to practice voter disenfranchisement, according to a NAACP webpage.
“I remember seeing the posters and the people coming back and talking about their experience in the South,” McCraw said. “It certainly didn’t involve that many students because you’d have to leave campus and get yourself down to Mississippi, but it was done and showed a level of commitment.”
David Williams, SJSU judo coach and alumnus, actively participated in on-campus protests against former California Governor Pete Wilson later in the ’90s.
“I was involved in the protest against Pete Wilson, who was trying to get rid of people of color and trying to pass laws that were English only and all that stuff,” Williams said.
In 1994, Wilson, who is a Republican, supported Proposition 187, which aimed to exclude undocumented immigrants from access to public services, including education, according to a research guide from the Library of Congress.
The initiative was passed in November of 1994, according to the same guide.
SJSU’s campus was also stirred into protest in 2013, when a Black student at SJSU had reportedly been verbally and physically harassed in the dorms, according to a Nov. 22, 2013, article from the New York Times.
“It was a terrible thing that was caught very late,” McCraw said. “I remember questioning, ‘How did something like this occur in a community where there’s a lot of people?’ ”
Following the incident, the university authorized a racial discrimination task force, which would include meetings to come up with ways to alleviate racial discrimination on campus, according to an SJSU webpage.
Another incident that sparked controversy on campus occurred in November 2008, when Gregory Johnson Jr., an African-American Sigma Chi fraternity member, was found dead in a basement hanging from a water pipe, according to a Feb. 19, 2009, article from the Spartan Daily.
Although Johnson’s death was reported as a suicide, his family suspected foul play, according to the same source.
Williams personally knew Johnson and didn’t believe that he would kill himself.
“It didn’t make sense to me,” Williams said. “I had just seen the kid (and) there were no signs. I mean, I guess you could be depressed, but I didn’t see it coming.”
However, during the time immediately after Johnson’s death, Williams didn’t remember there being many protests advocating for justice for Johnson and his family.
“I don’t believe there was ever a protest to find out what happened with him,” Williams said. “I think it was because of the way it was presented. You didn’t find out a lot of the stuff that came out until later. If it had come out right away, then there probably would have been more actions taken by people.”
Concerning recent protests around Johnson’s death, protestors gathered near Santana Row petitioning for a reinvestigation of the situation, according to an Oct. 4, 2020, Spartan Daily article.
“I definitely think it (Black activism) is shaping the culture, especially with our current federal administration and just everything happening around the world,” Brown said. “I feel like it’s really impacting now and our voices are going to be louder than ever.”
The main objective of the Black Honor Society is to develop a unified and community-focused Black student body at SJSU, according to an SJSU webpage.
Because of the actions of President Donald J. Trump’s administration, Brown predicts another shift in Black activism on campus.
Trump has made efforts to eliminate government Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, which could undermine the employment of minority workers, including the African-American community, according to a March 4 article from USA Today.
“There has to be constant pressure to make sure that people in power understand that we will not be taken eight steps back,” Williams said. “All the stuff that you see happening right now is going to be insane. I cannot wait to see what you young people do with it.”
