{"id":138082,"date":"2016-02-04T15:57:36","date_gmt":"2016-02-04T20:57:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=138082"},"modified":"2016-02-09T10:51:47","modified_gmt":"2016-02-09T15:51:47","slug":"student-gathering-responds-to-president-seligmans-decision-on-yik-yak-138082","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/student-gathering-responds-to-president-seligmans-decision-on-yik-yak-138082\/","title":{"rendered":"Students gather in response to Yik Yak decision"},"content":{"rendered":"
On Thursday, Feb. 4, about 30 students gathered on the steps of Rush Rhees Library on the River Campus\u2014some walking out of class\u2014to address University President and CEO Joel Seligman\u2019s recent response<\/a><\/strong> to an interim report issued by the University\u2019s Presidential Commission on Race and Diversity.<\/p>\n The main focus of the gathering was the president\u2019s decision not to ban the social media app Yik Yak from the University\u2019s servers.<\/p>\n \u201cFreedom of expression must not be confused with hate speech,\u201d said Sequoia Kemp \u201816, president of the Black Students’ Union, in response to Seligman\u2019s statement that banning Yik Yak from the University\u2019s WiFi networks would undercut the rights of both students and faculty.<\/p>\n During the 20-minute gathering, Simone Johnson \u201917, vice president of the Black Students\u2019 Union, read aloud the student\u2019s previous list of demands in connection with Seligman\u2019s subsequent responses. \u201cNot all of our demands have been addressed,\u201d said Johnson, who told the group that they are currently drafting an official response to the report.<\/p>\n The meeting ended with students taking a moment of silence to reflect on how far they have come on this issue, and how far they have yet to go.<\/p>\n