BUS urges two USG senators to resign

Members of BUS address USG senators during USG’s Wednesday meeting. from KentWired.com on Vimeo.

Black United Students filed grievances against two Undergraduate Student Government senators, urging them to resign at USG’s meeting Wednesday night.

BUS filed grievances following the two senators allegedly making a racist comment in the USG office Oct. 14. The comment offended BUS president Matthew Thompson and USG executive director Marvin Logan.

According to a video of the meeting provided by TV2, Thompson said that he and other BUS and USG members overheard Sen. at Large Joshua Lewis and Sen. of Residence Halls Lauren Buchanan make a racial joke.

Logan said it made him, “so disgusted… that he had to leave the room”.

During the meeting, Thompson read a letter to USG expressing his grievances about the issue and said that he requested a meeting multiple times following the incident and also reached out to speak to Buchanan and Lewis personally about the issue.

“The problem is not about race, the problem is being culturally and emotionally competent,” Thompson said.

The accusations against Lewis and Buchanan created an opportunity for BUS to address another area of concern it has with USG: a lack of involvement in diversity activities on campus. BUS made demands to USG that both organizations attend diversity training.

Lewis, who was the director of political affairs and grievances of BUS until he resigned in September, left the room during the meeting after expressing that he only wanted to speak to his superiors about his potential resignation.

Buchanan said she didn’t remember making the statement but she would take responsibility and apologized to BUS at the end of the meeting.

Contact Elizabeth Randolph at [email protected]. Contact Tyler Carey at [email protected].

Editor’s note: Due to a reporter’s error, the original version of this article said Joshua Lewis was the current director of political affairs and grievances of BUS, but he resigned from this position in September.