Spring Alumni Magazine: The Changemakers

Contributed several stories to series called The Changemakers in the Spring 2021 edition of the Wright State Alumni Magazine

Link: https://issuu.com/wrightstateuniversity/docs/wrightstatemagazine_spring2021_issuu/28

Overview:

The events of last May were a wake-up call to many Americans, while many others saw the faintest glimmer of hope following decades upon decades of repeated turmoil and heartache.

The time for being silent is over. We will confront this head on. History is no longer on repeat. The deep pain felt by the Black community has hopefully seen its last breath on a long path toward healing. Building up a better community is imperative—one that fosters an environment of inclusivity, empowerment, and respect.

It is time to stand up and listen to our neighbors, friends, students, faculty, staff, and alumni. In our amazingly diverse and seemingly infinite community, there are agents of change—individuals who define what it is to make a difference for those around them.

The following alumni and Wright State community members are confronting racism and all of its manifestations.

They have made a dedicated responsibility to help their communities move forward—a responsibility not taken lightly.

They are activists and educators, visionaries and advocates, innovators and radicals.

They are the changemakers.

[ Sections I contributed ]

Catching that fish

Robert “Bo” Chilton ’94, ’00 activist and nonprofit leader, fights for the stability of Columbus citizens

Robert “Bo” Chilton leads with a familiar philosophy of giving people more to help regain power in their lives.

“We think about our work in using the parable, if you give a person fish, they eat for a day. You teach the person to fish they will eat for a lifetime,” he said. “But, even with that, I challenge the function and say you’re not going to eat for a lifetime unless there’s some pond, river, or sea from which to catch that fish.”

Chilton serves as CEO of IMPACT Community Action, an organization that serves over 25,000 citizens annually in the Columbus area. From homelessness prevention to rent assistance to helping individuals obtain and sustain employment, IMPACT is focused on moving people from crisis to stability.

The majority of the community members IMPACT serves are Black and people of color living in underserved communities around Columbus—a population severely impacted by COVID-19 in recent months.

IMPACT has been working with hundreds of residents to assist in potential evictions.

“Franklin County is one of the worst in the nation, in terms of mass evictions per capita. [They] evict over 18,000 people annually, but that’s where we’re intervening,” he said.

One way in which Chilton sees possible change in his community is through changes to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), a federal law enacted in 1977 designed to encourage banks to help meet the credit needs of borrowers in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.

“When we start talking about the CRA, obviously there’s been systemic and historical racism that has contributed to redlining and putting segments of our society out of the shared prosperity that should be available to all as an American citizen,” said Chilton.

An example, he said, is that banks can count loans for improvements to projects that sit in poor neighborhoods.

“It might be possible for the banks that financed the [Columbus] Crew Stadium to claim credit for investing in low-income communities,” he said. “This type of investing contributes to gentrification and displacement of low-income people, not at all what the CRA was intended to do.”

Another piece of legislation he sees as a stepping stone is Issue 2—which voters overwhelmingly supported in November—creating the Civilian Review Board for the Columbus Division of Police.

Chilton said he doesn’t like the term “defund the police,” but instead wants to see a stronger relationship with the community and police together.

He said, “I really don’t like the idea that the whole Black Lives Matter is in juxtaposition with the police, because then you get into a back and forth between Black Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter, and it’s not an either/or.” —Sarah Cavender ’20

From agony to action

Rep. Joyce Beatty ’75 fights racial injustice from the front lines

Rep. Joyce Beatty has served as the U.S. Representative for Ohio’s 3rd Congressional District since 2013 and was recently named chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

This past November, during one of the most heated and highly politicized election cycles in recent memory, she was one of the most outspoken political voices advocating for social justice and national change.

Beatty was also one of the few politicians to walk the front lines and protest with the Black Lives Matter movement.

“I was so proud and honored that people were glad to see an elected official,” she said. “They’re glad to see that we were uniting with students, activists, and others.”

On May 30, she joined a group of demonstrators in downtown Columbus protesting police violence following the killing of George Floyd. The protest turned into a clash with police.

“As the crowd got larger, in my role to try to be helpful, I went across the street where there were some protesters, and some police officers in riot gear came along,” Beatty said.

At the height of the excitement and anger, Beatty said the demonstrators exchanged words with police and the scene turned into chaos, and pepper spray was released into the crowd.

Beatty said the experience opened her eyes to what happens to many others unnecessarily.

“As I was pepper-sprayed and just feeling that burning sensation…that kind of opened my eyes to see what happens to so many people,” said Beatty. “What happened to George Floyd is real—there are disparities within our system. We certainly know that Black people are treated disproportionately differently and we have witnessed that.”

Beatty said she was pleased to see the national attention the movement was getting. “It gives me hope that we will have change,” she said.

One of those points of change, she said, is HR7120, the George Floyd Policing Act, which was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in February. The bill includes measures to combat police misconduct, excessive force, and racial bias in policing.

“We have to keep the legislation at the forefront,” she said. “Words matter—we have to put it in words that can educate.”

The Congresswoman is optimistic about the bill, but said there is a need for more education and awareness.

Beatty hopes to challenge others to be engaged and calls the work “agony to action.”

“We’ve had so much agony, with the death of the George Floyds and the Breonna Taylors and, more recently, Casey Goodson, that we don’t want their lives and their deaths to be in vain,” Beatty said. “So, we’re going to go to work, from agony to action. The action of giving everyone a challenge to be engaged, to be more informed.” —Sarah Cavender ’20

Black voices matter

Dorian Buford ’21, president of the Black Student Union, has been a voice for students in the wake of social injustice

Dorian Buford is an activist. It’s in his blood. His father, Carlos Buford, a well-known local political activist, founded the Dayton chapter of Black Lives Matter.

This summer, after seeing cities across the country march for racial justice, Buford knew he needed more from

Wright State.

As president of the Black Student Union (BSU), together with his members and the Student Government Association, they issued a statement to university administration, asking that the issues of Black students be addressed on the university’s social media channels.

“We wanted our voices to be heard by the faculty and administration,” he said. “Back in April, there was a lot going on at that time, especially on social media.”

Buford said he had seen several other national universities writing posts of support for their Black students on their main social media accounts.

“We weren’t seeing that kind of support,” he said. “Our generation is reliant on social media. That’s how we can seek support from our university.”

After the letter, he said, BSU had several conversations with university leadership and the university started to take the necessary steps to address the issue.

As BSU president, Buford’s goal has been to create a family-like atmosphere for students going through the effects of police violence, the election, and COVID-19.

“The Black community [at Wright State] is small, so, I want all of us to be united,” Buford said. “Make sure our voices are heard, our struggles are addressed.”

In late August, Buford traveled with his father to the March on Washington in Washington, D.C., an event, he said, that helped “unite America for one cause.”

Upon his return, he and other students voiced concern after the Wright State Rock, a symbol of expression and social action on campus, had its message of #BlackLivesMatter painted over.

“The campus rock has been vandalized with hate speech before [in 2016]; someone had painted it with ‘Black Lives Matter,’ but then someone painted ‘White Lives Matter’ on top,” Buford said.

Enraged, BSU members wanted to take action, deciding to host the Black Voices Matter Rally. On October 8, the rally attracted over 150 people, including students, staff, faculty, and administrative leadership.

The event featured speakers, poets, musical performances, and information about racial injustice and voting in the 2020 election. A candlelight vigil recognized 50 victims of police violence.

“I was proud and humbled that we received so much recognition and praise for this much-needed event,” Buford said.

Though there is still work to do, Buford said he has seen improvement on campus.

“I think the university has taken the necessary steps to make sure that we are taken care of, not just the Black community, but all minority groups,” he said. —Sarah Cavender ’20

This article was originally published in the spring 2021 issue of the Wright State Magazine. Find more stories at wright.edu/alumnimag.Black voices matter

Dorian Buford ’21, president of the Black Student Union, has been a voice for students in the wake of social injustice

Dorian Buford is an activist. It’s in his blood. His father, Carlos Buford, a well-known local political activist, founded the Dayton chapter of Black Lives Matter.

This summer, after seeing cities across the country march for racial justice, Buford knew he needed more from

Wright State.

As president of the Black Student Union (BSU), together with his members and the Student Government Association, they issued a statement to university administration, asking that the issues of Black students be addressed on the university’s social media channels.

“We wanted our voices to be heard by the faculty and administration,” he said. “Back in April, there was a lot going on at that time, especially on social media.”

Buford said he had seen several other national universities writing posts of support for their Black students on their main social media accounts.

“We weren’t seeing that kind of support,” he said. “Our generation is reliant on social media. That’s how we can seek support from our university.”

After the letter, he said, BSU had several conversations with university leadership and the university started to take the necessary steps to address the issue.

As BSU president, Buford’s goal has been to create a family-like atmosphere for students going through the effects of police violence, the election, and COVID-19.

“The Black community [at Wright State] is small, so, I want all of us to be united,” Buford said. “Make sure our voices are heard, our struggles are addressed.”

In late August, Buford traveled with his father to the March on Washington in Washington, D.C., an event, he said, that helped “unite America for one cause.”

Upon his return, he and other students voiced concern after the Wright State Rock, a symbol of expression and social action on campus, had its message of #BlackLivesMatter painted over.

“The campus rock has been vandalized with hate speech before [in 2016]; someone had painted it with ‘Black Lives Matter,’ but then someone painted ‘White Lives Matter’ on top,” Buford said.

Enraged, BSU members wanted to take action, deciding to host the Black Voices Matter Rally. On October 8, the rally attracted over 150 people, including students, staff, faculty, and administrative leadership.

The event featured speakers, poets, musical performances, and information about racial injustice and voting in the 2020 election. A candlelight vigil recognized 50 victims of police violence.

“I was proud and humbled that we received so much recognition and praise for this much-needed event,” Buford said.

Though there is still work to do, Buford said he has seen improvement on campus.

“I think the university has taken the necessary steps to make sure that we are taken care of, not just the Black community, but all minority groups,” he said. —Sarah Cavender ’20

This article was originally published in the spring 2021 issue of the Wright State Magazine. Find more stories at wright.edu/alumnimag.