It would be naive to pretend that what happened on campus Feb. 4 was an isolated incident. It would be easy to brush it off as a bizarre and rare occurrence that fails to highlight our school’s morals. It would be an easy way out to say that what happened on our campus is not a reflection of our university’s values. But that would be inaccurate. Because the truth is, this is Chapman. This environment is nothing new. It’s a breeding ground that has allowed this mentality to flourish. Chapman may not encourage this type of attitude, but it doesn’t exactly discourage this type of attitude either.

In the last few years, our school has been hit by scandal after scandal, many of which revolved around race. From the All Lives Matter Flag in 2017 to the highly controversial “Birth of a Nation” poster and subsequent protests last year, Chapman’s track record on race doesn’t align with the values the university claims to uphold.

Saying this incident isn’t representative of Chapman and boasting of the university’s continuous commitments to diversity does not change what happened on Tuesday, nor does it excuse it. One of Chapman’s core foundations is diversity. Reminding students of that is beneficial, but it doesn’t change reality. Actions speak louder than words and it would appear that in the aftermath of these controversies, students have felt let down by an administration that is all bark and no bite. If a racist and homophobic event occurs on campus, than it’s not true to say that this “isn’t us.” Because it is us.

While Tuesday’s incident was especially horrific it isn’t necessarily new or novel. Every single year there is something new that overshadows the racist controversies of the past years.

Furthermore, if Chapman is so dedicated to diversity, why is the retention rate for black students drastically lower than the retention rate for white students? Why did the former president of BSU transfer from Chapman? It’s as if the school isn’t fully aware of the reality.

The solutions that have been presented aren’t working. Community forums and increased dialogues aren’t fixing a divided campus. It’s like putting Band-Aids over bullet holes. Students want to see tangible changes, changes that can only occur when the administration acknowledges that there’s a problem at Chapman.

At the end of the day, it’s not the job of students of color at Chapman to educate white students. It’s not their responsibility to protect themselves; they should already be protected. It’s not their duty to end ignorance. It’s up to all of us.

Change isn’t easy and it doesn’t come fast either. There needs to be a zero tolerance policy. This kind of speech, this atrocious homophobic and racist speech has no place at Chapman and it’s time to act to ensure that these egregious attitudes do not make a home here.

Lastly, the administration needs to listen to the concerns of students and respond accordingly. Claiming that “this isn’t us” only distances our institution from what happened, turning us into the archetype that white supremacy and hate groups take advantage of.