Northern Illinois University has quietly edited their mandatory diversity training, following YAF’s exposé that showed the school labeled “blue lives matter” as an example of “anti-blackness.”
Last fall, YAF’s Campus Bias Tip Line received information about a mandatory training for incoming student organization leaders. One of the slides listed examples of alleged “anti-blackness,” including “misinformation or lies, the belief that Black people are dangerous, and anti-black institutions and policies.” Most shockingly, the presentation asserted that saying “all lives matter” and “blue lives matter” were also examples.
NIU faced swift backlash after YAF’s expose, yet the school declined to comment on the story.
Young America’s Foundation’s legal team filed a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain all the documents related to NIU’s mandatory training. YAF found that the PowerPoint slide listing examples of “anti-blackness” was quietly amended––removing “all lives matter” and “blue lives matter.”
NIU Spokesman Joe King told YAF that NIU’s curricula is “always evolving to meet the needs of our community.”
“Our goal is to involve students in critical dialogue around social justice to provide opportunities for effective communication, understanding, and engagement,” King said. “Therefore, we strive to remove any barriers in our materials that might make anyone less inclined to participate in dialogue while still allowing us to address sensitive topics.”
YAF’s Campus Bias Tip Line is an important resource for students that leads to real change on campuses. If this student hadn’t come forward, NIU’s biased, leftist training would have continued pushing the narrative that supporting police is anti-black––a completely false statement. YAF will continue to expose these inane instances of bias, and hold schools accountable so true reform is made.
Are you facing bias or discrimination on campus? Submit a tip.