By: Lex and Abby X
Triggered by inhumane living conditions in Howard University’s student housing, including flooding in rooms, limited housing options, students coughing up blood from mold exposure, and other grievances, since Tuesday, October 12th, Howard students began a now 13 day sit-in at the Armour J. Blackburn University Center to demand accountability from the school’s administration. What began with a small group of student activist quickly grew after DC abolitionist organizations and hundreds of student protesters answered the #BlackburnTakeover call to action. According to Freshman political science major, Kymora Olmo, “the emailing them, the calling, the submitting petitions, it’s not working. So clearly we have to take affirmative action, and occupying Blackburn is what we’re going to continue to do because that’s the only thing seeming to get anyone’s attention” (The Hilltop).
While videos circulated on social media brought a firestorm of indignation from students and sympathizers across the country, not many know the background behind the long-anticipated outcry for housing justice at Howard. Specifically, few know that Howard University housing is run by property management firm, Corvias, who has a known history of abusing the living standards in its subsidiaries. In fact, in the summer of 2020, Senator Elizabeth Warren and Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib wrote a letter on behalf of Congress highlighting the dangerous profit-over-people mentality which Corvias has displayed in their housing projects. The letter ultimately requested transparency on Corvias’s dealings with other groups, but pointed first to Corvias’s alarming push against the University System of Georgia, with whom they have a 65 year contract, urging them to ignore CDC guidelines and allow students back into dorms despite the global pandemic. This would of course allow Corvias’s revenue stream from students housing to continue unabated, while dismissing the obvious risks to students’ health. The letter also mentions how Corvias refused to reimburse students for housing, forcing the University System to seek government help to cover losses with CARES Act funds, while they quietly pocketed housing fees collected prior to the pandemic according to their contract.
Moreover, Warren and Tlaib mention in passing Corvias’s known mishandling of US military housing projects, which this year resulted in black mold, flooding, and shattered roofs that injured children. Reports on those scandals from CBS corroborate many of the same issues Howard students are now calling-out, including a general failure to correct issues after they are brought up and addressed by Corvias property managers.
After student groups and abolitionist organizations bolstered the Howard protest on Oct. 13th, students have had multiple meetings with administration and delivered four demands. The demands now are primarily,
1) a transparent housing plan,
2) reinstatement of affiliate trustee positions such as student, faculty and alumni
3) a town hall with the University president.
The initial three demands rose to four after students were issued a thinly veiled threat from Vice President of Student Affairs, Cynthia Evers, saying via email that “some students committed multiple violations of the Student Code of Conduct” and “those who remain in the center and who vandalize Howard University property are in violation of the University’s policies on student conduct and public health guidance.” President of the university, Wayne Frederick agreed that the accusations of vandalism were false and agreed to correct Evers email in an upcoming communication. As of the publication of this article, that correction has yet to manifest, according to students on the university listserv.
The fourth demand added was academic and legal immunity for student protesters.
Photo: The Wash Rev
Despite the inconsistent response from administration, students and supporters have rallied together to create a network of support outside of the structures of the university.
When the university closed the dining hall and Punch Out food court on campus, located in Blackburn, students responded by gathering funds to order food and feed not just the students protesters, but any student who stopped by. Businesses have also pitched in to provide free meals. While many are camped out within and without the building, graduate students have stopped by to provide tutoring – these activists are still students busy as work. A handful of students from the school of social work program set up their own tent and have been sleeping outside with the students providing healing circles and self-care help. As homecoming raged on in the background, students even had their own block party, gogo band, and movie night in front of the occupied students union.
The network created around the sit-in is a practice in building resources outside of pre-existing systems and institutions. It is the definition of We Keep Us Safe.
To support Howard students as they continue to call-out their administration, follow this link to sign their petition to cancel dealings with Corvias and improve the living conditions at Howard:
To read more unsettling evidence of Corvias’s shady history and the danger of public-private partnerships, follow this link to find Howard student, Kymberli Corprue’s, research into the topic:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wKQ9iXcJGk8sIjEUM_qNX7CLD-rK3jA2/view?usp=drivesdk
The Washington Revolutionary 