– I expect to live in a place where I can feel safe and secure, but the boarding school has become dangerous to health, says student Lamiya Murray to ABC News.
The 18-year-old is a student at Howard University in Washington and one of many students who have moved out to tents because they think living conditions are too bad.
The students talk about how water leaks, mold, insects and rodents endanger their health. Murray believes the poor facilities are the cause of a respiratory infection she struggled with earlier this year.
– Every morning I woke up with a cough that I did not have when I went to bed the night before, and I struggled to breathe at night, Murray says. She says several of her maintenance inquiries have not been addressed.
A Twitter user has posted a video in which she writes that she is cursed by the conditions.
– Mold has grown under my microwave, on my mattress, in my wardrobe, behind my mirror, in my fridge, she writes.
@HowardU IM PISSED. OVER 24 hours and NO change. IVE BEEN BREATHING THIS IN. mold has been growing under my microwave, on my mattress. in my closet. on my suitcase. behind my mirror. in my FRIDGE. i am taking legal actions and i’ll be damned if anyone stops me. @fox5dc pic.twitter.com/euJlWdZQAx
– kaedriana (@kaeebhabie) October 15, 2021
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Has occupied building
Since Oct. 12, Murray and dozens of other students have taken over the Blackburn University Center, a student center and cafeteria on campus, where they now do not allow the university administration.
A banner has been hung outside the building with the words “Enough is enough”. Students take turns standing guard at the entrances to the center. Within the guarded doors, some sleep in sleeping bags, others study or eat food they have received from local civil rights groups, writes ABC.
“Our entire Blackburn family is allowed in and out of the building,” said student Murray.
They do not allow outsiders in.
– We try to keep the students safe and keep everyone in an atmosphere where they feel comfortable talking about what is happening on campus, she says.
The university has warned the students occupying the building that the demonstration is contrary to the university’s code of conduct for students and that students risk being expelled. This is stated in an email ABC has been given access to.
Responds to the accusations
According to the University, they have registered 34 inquiries related to suspected mold. It makes up 0.67 percent of the university’s beds, writes ABC.
“Student well-being is always one of Howard University’s biggest priorities, and we always support students’ right to protest peacefully,” Frank Tramble of the university’s administration told ABC.
He says they actively check up on students’ inquiries.
“Even though there have only been a small number of documented inquiries, we actively seek out any problems that may be in the bedrooms by going door to door to get an overview of each room,” says Tramble.
He also says that the students will get temporary rooms while the problems are solved.
In an e-mail to the students, the university has acknowledged that there is mold in some buildings, but emphasizes that the problem is not widespread. They write that they hold the third-party supplier fully responsible and that they work with maintenance.
Long, hot, wet summers, record high temperatures and humidity are environmental factors that create the climatic conditions that promote mold growth. We have listened to the students’ concerns, and we have been responsive, says Cynthia Evers, who is vice president for student affairs at the university.
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