WASHINGTON (WUSA9) — The person behind the Medium.com article that brought to light the Howard University financial aid scandal talked exclusively with WUSA9 Anchor Debra Alfarone Sunday.
The two spoke on campus outside the Administration building, as the #HUPower sit-in reached its fourth day. According to school officials, they met one of the students' nine demands.
The interviewee is behind the Twitter handle @veritas1867 as well, and says the students won't leave until all 9 demands have been met.
You'll hear that the person's voice has been altered to protect their identity at their request.
Debra Alfarone: You haven't talked to us until now. Why are you talking now?
Veritas1867: I'm talking now because I wanted to be clear to the community, to the public, especially our alumni community, and people who just don't understand who think this is about financial aid, that's not the case. It's not just about financial aid, it's not just about campus police, it's not just about campus sexual assault, it's about having a leader that the students has no confidence in but also a university that have historically disenfranchised the students and also tried to operate in a way that doesn't allow the stakeholders to be actively involved.
Debra: Do you think you're going to get the President to resign?
Veritas1867: The students are not leaving until President Frederick resigns. That is non-negotiable. They're not leaving until he resigns.
Debra: Why is it so important that he goes?
Veritas1867: Dr. Frederick has eroded trust between the student community and other communities who don't feel as empowered to speak out publicly This is like a marriage that has come to an end because there's no trust. Even if he committed to changing, if he said he would change, no one would believe him. He's been abusive and so we don't think there's any solid foundation for a future relationship to be built upon. He has been intimidating, he has tried to target protesters, he is the reason this hasn't happened sooner. And the students are speaking up and they are saying they're not afraid anymore, and they're not afraid of him. They're not afraid of his administration, the people he sends after us, so we're going to be here until he resigns.
Debra: No matter how long?
Veritas1867: No matter how long.
Stacey J. Mobley, Esq., Chairman of the Howard University Board of Trustee, responded late Sunday with the following statement:
The comments by your interview subject are inaccurate and defamatory. President Frederick regularly engages with students and other campus constituents to discuss the critical issues facing our community. He is committed to ensuring that each of our campus offices operates with integrity. Furthermore, we have a rich tradition of vigorous debate and discourse and President Frederick has always been supportive of this institution’s core values.
My fellow board members and I fully support President Frederick’s continuous progress on the critical issues facing Howard University. Together, we are making positive strides to improve our operations and infrastructure, increase resources and foster a positive environment for our students. We look forward to continuing to work with our students and our entire community to achieve progress and continue to move our community forward.
