The History of Multicultural Student Center and Key Events in Relation to Race at UW-Madison
By Oliviachang
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The First Model of MSC and Black Culture Center
Chancellor William H. Sewell appointed an Ad Hoc Committee Race Relations to help students become better informed on problems of race relations. The committee recommended creating an Afro- American and Race Relations Center (which was established in August of 1968) to improve the academic, cultural, and social climate for race relations at UW-Madison. It provided a space for Black students and others to gather to exchange ideas, work, study, and socialize. -
The Beginning of Wunk Sheek(Native Student Resources)
Wunk Sheek supports indigenous students to socialize with one another, connect with other student organizations and represent indigenous communities to the wider Madison community. There are discussions about the history of the land the university occupies, issues relevant to indigenous populations and actively celebrating and raising awareness of Indigenous Peoples Day. -
1969 Black Students strike
Students created 13 demands to bring more equal opportunities and attention for African American students. The strike started because the Black students and allies were angered at Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination and 94 black students at the University of Wisconsin- Oshkosh were expelled because they protested there. -
Inequalities in Education
Black students are three times more likely to be suspended than white students in Madison schools, according to a report prepared by the Urban League, the first of several such studies highlighting discrepancies in education over the years. -
The cause of the Holley Report
In Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, partygoers were blackface to present a racist caricature of a “native” black man, with exaggerated lips and a bone through his nose. This sparked protests, particularly on the UW’s Black Student Union, and later pressured the university to create a steering committee on race-related issues. -
The Holley Report
Also known as the Final Report of the Steering Committee on Minority Affairs, the Holley Report recognizes UW-Madison’s shortcomings in becoming a truly mutli-cultural community of learning and low percentage of students and faculty of color. There were nine key recommendations that would help build a truly multicultural community. These recommendations were later implemented or revised throughout the university’s subsequent history of diversity planning. -
The Start of MSC
Additionally, the Center will create an atmosphere of warmth, identity, and sense of belonging among students of color; foster better relations within designated groups, between designated groups, and between American students of color and Euro-American communities. The Center will also build stronger links with the institution and the Madison community. -
Social Justice Education Specialists added to MSC
MSC hired two Social Justice Education Specialists to develop based on the goals of the Diversity Education Program. The mission of DEP was to improve the campus climate for all groups by reminding us how social identities and inequalities affect experiences and interactions, providing full and equal opportunities for all groups to ensure that all students are physically and psychologically safe and secure. -
The Start of Asian Pacific Islander Desi American Student Center
Riley Tsang and Shannon Thao created a committee for APIDA and developed a proposal to present in collaboration and in solidarity with the student activists working to establish the Latinx Cultural Center. They used each other’s projects to build on their own individual efforts forming a student coalition. -
The Start of Latinx Cultural Center
The idea for a Latinx Cultural Center was inspired by the student activism on campus regarding the establishment of BCC and the developing work for the APIDA. Students joined forces with student activists working to start the APIDA Student Center, drafted a proposal, and presented proposals for both centers together to a group of university officials in March. Native American and Black students attended in solidarity and in support of Latinx and APIDA students, all as a strong coalition.