Some San Jose community members voiced frustration Wednesday during the San Jose State Associated Students Board of Directors meeting after President Mary Papazian, who was scheduled to attend and expected to address Gregory Johnson Jr.'s case, was absent.
Lou Dimes, president of Black Liberation and Collective Knowledge (B.L.A.C.K.) Outreach, a San Jose activism collective, said Papazian disrespected Johnson’s memory and family by not attending.
“We’ll sit here [at the A.S. meeting] and wait for her [to come],” Dimes said during the meeting. “[Papazian] needs to understand [not showing up] is a big mistake . . . [She’s] wasting people’s time and disrespecting the community [by not] coming out and supporting [Johnson].”
Johnson was an SJSU student and Sigma Chi fraternity member whose body was discovered hanging in the fraternity’s basement in 2008.
The University Police Department and Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office ruled the case a suicide, according to the autopsy report.
Johnson’s parents called the case a murder and a hate crime and have advocated for the re-investigation of his case.
Papazian attends A.S. board meetings once or twice a year to respond to general questions from meeting attendees, according to Kenneth Mashinchi, senior director of strategic communications and media relations.
She was unable to attend Wednesday’s meeting because of technical difficulties and time constraints, Mashinchi said.
“A few minutes before her scheduled arrival, [Papazian] discovered the Zoom link she had received [for the A.S meeting] was for a future personnel committee meeting,” Mashinchi said in an email. “By the time the error was corrected, only five minutes remained before she needed to proceed with her next scheduled commitment.”
He also said Papazian was unaware the agenda item concerning Johnson would be discussed at the meeting.
Papazian sent a campuswide email acknowledging the controversy surrounding Johnson’s case on Feb. 18 and said the university would cooperate with county officials to review it.
Around 50 people attended the meeting to show support for Johnson’s family and discuss avenues for justice.
Several attendees during public comment, including Johnson’s mother Denise Johnson, said they were disappointed with how the university handled Johnson’s death in 2008.
“I will never forget my child,” Denise Johnson said. “I will never forget I sent a person of excellence, who wanted to do nothing but help the school and you [SJSU] sent him back in a body bag.”
Connor Petri, a music education freshman currently taking the semester off, said Papazian should make discussions with Johnson’s family and their supporters a priority.
“Papazian decided whatever this other meeting is, it's more important than [listening] to [Denise Johnson,] whose son was murdered at the school that [she’s] in charge of,” Petri said in a phone call.
Mashinchi said Papazian is committed to the ongoing efforts to address systemic racism and “looks forward to future opportunities to engage in this crucial conversation.”
Resolution addresses Anti-Blackness and systemic racism
A.S. directors presented “Gregory’s Resolution Addressing Anti-Blackness and Systemic Racism” to ask the university to recognize and address the demands of Johnson’s family, including re-examining the incidences that resulted in his death.
Directors also asked the university to document Black students’ experiences with intentional surveys and help provide more academic and financial support.
Some community members said during the meeting they were dissatisfied with the resolution.
Pamela Emanuel, a community member and activist, said the resolution should include dismantling the Sigma Chi fraternity and A.S. should fund money for the case’s reinvestigation.
“I think those are great avenues to help,” Emanuel said during the meeting.
Jocelyn Jones-Trammell, director of sustainability affairs, drafted the resolution and said directors don’t have the authority to make those decisions.
“We [directors] have discussed [these ideas] before but [A.S.] is restricted by certain laws . . . there are things we can and can’t do with our money,” Jones-Trammell said in the meeting. “Writing this document is the only thing that could happen that I could do in this moment.”
Kadence Walker, director of legislative affairs, said he understands the demands and recommended the resolution be updated and discussed at future meetings.
“[We] understand you want that change and implementation immediately,” Walker said in the meeting. “I promise you all of us are going to do our absolute best to make sure this resolution and our actions in the future, address this situation.”
