Racially Offensive T-Shirts Made by Samford University Sorority

t-shirtA sorority at Samford University in suburban Birmingham, Alabama, produced a T-shirt promoting its spring formal dance that had a map of the state of Alabama that included images of a Black man eating watermelon and slaves picking cotton. The university stated that it had rejected the design of the shirts but that the sorority went ahead with their production.

The president of the Samford chapter of the sorority apologized and maintained that the sorority “failed to focus” on the images within the map of the state. When the images were brought to the attention of the sorority’s leadership, they said they asked members not to wear the shirts and destroy them.

In an email message to the campus community, Andrew Westmoreland, president of Samford, wrote: “I was repulsed by the image. I lack the words to express my own sense of frustration.”

Samford University is affiliated with the Baptist Church. It enrolls about 3,000 undergraduates and 1,900 graduate students. African Americans are 7 percent of the undergraduate student body.

Related Articles

2 COMMENTS

  1. I’m a southerner BUT are we to be REALLY surprised that such is a recurring incident in certain sections of the country?

    RE: “The university stated that it had rejected the design of the shirts but that the sorority went ahead with their production.” . . .

  2. Please African American College Students, We have Wonderful, Outstanding, HBCU’S-

    They are not obsolete, they are more relevant than ever. Give them a try. You will not be sorry.

Leave a Reply

Get the JBHE Weekly Bulletin

Receive our weekly email newsletter delivered to your inbox

Latest News

Howard University Achieves R1 Status While North Carolina A&T State University Falls Short

Howard University has received the prestigious R1 Carnegie Classification, making the institution eligible for major federal grants. NCA&T University narrowly missed the achievement, averaging just three less annual doctoral graduates than the classification's requirements.

Three Black Scholars Selected for Endowed Faculty Positions

The new endowed professors are Eddie Chambers at School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Stefanie Dunning at the University of Rochester in New York, and Kizzmekia Corbett-Helaire at Harvard University.

North Carolina Central University Establishes Early Assurance Program With the UNC School of Pharmacy

Students at North Carolina Central University now have the opportunity to apply to an early assurance program for the doctor of pharmacy degree program at the University of North Carolina's Eshelman School of Pharmacy, the top-ranked pharmacy school in the United States.

Five Black Administrators Taking on New Roles at HBCUs

The appointments are Anthony Neal at Florida A&M University, Tara Cunningham at Dillard University in New Orleans, David Camps at North Carolina A&T State University, Michael Meyers at Paine College in Georgia, and Sidney Brown at Tuskegee University in Alabama.

Featured Jobs