Last year, ACAR was given an ethnocultural space by the University of Sydney Union (USU). We primarily use it to plot our coup against the Turnbull administration, away from the watchful eye of ASIO, but it is also used as a safe space where students of colour can go to study or hang out. The space is autonomous to those who identify as ethnocultural, with signage explaining this, but over the course of this semester the autonomy of the space has been breached several times.
We have had blankets, cutlery, and most of the books in our library stolen. On several occasions, white people have deliberately encroached on the space.
The most recent culprit was a band named The Black Dahlia Murder. On May 12th, a source told us that two crew members told her to leave the space so the band could use the room as their dressing room. Not to mention that there’s plenty of other rooms in Manning House for everyone to use.
This breach comes with many others, including one of our officers witnessing a white man appearing to be staging a sit-in (sitting in a corner for hours but not doing anything), and other members walking in on white people eating in the room.
We’re writing this to say: white people, we don’t hate you. There will always be a place in our hearts for you, but you’re choking us with your love. It’s not that we never want to see you. We just need some space. We think it’s time we took a break.
