Discrimination on Campus
Discrimination is something that people face every day, including on campus at U of SC Aiken. Junior English major Addie Folland talked about her discrimination experience during her first year on campus.
“living is Crossings my freshman year was the worst experience of my life. I had only come out that year as bisexual, so I was still attempting to understand myself and how I felt about all of it,” she said. “My friend that supports me ended up getting me a pride flag for my room so I hung it up. And after I got back from class [one] day, I had noticed it was gone so I searched everywhere. I ended up finding it in the trash bin in my room.”
Folland thinks that it’s important for others to remember not to victim blame and to hear what people who have been discriminated against have to say.
“If there was a way to not victim blame, that would be awesome. Just listen to people and let them tell their stories so that they can spread awareness,” she said. “As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I know that I can speak for all of us when I say that we will not stand for this anymore because it is not fair that humans can get away with these hate crimes on campus.”
Angel Hope Watts, a senior psychology major, has faced discrimination regarding mental and physical health disabilities.
“I have accommodations with the disabilities services office,” she said. “I have had nothing but positive experiences with them. But outside of that office, the USCA community is very ableist.”
“COVID has really been a saving grace for me at USCA,” said Watts. “because I’ve taken everything for the last year and a half online. Before that, teachers would dock me on points on participation and give me late point grades even with documented notes and accommodations because of hospitalizations and doctor visits.”
TJ Sharpe, an RM and senior political science major, says that the university is trying to prevent these kinds of situations from happening.
“I believe that many withing to university are working to end discrimination,” he said. “However, it is still prevalent everywhere and we must do more so that everyone feels safe and valued on our campus.”
