LSU President F. King Alexander cares about the University and his students, and he has done a wonderful job providing support for students during a tumultuous summer in Baton Rouge.
Alexander’s response to the wake of recent tragedies and social issues is refreshing. It shows our university president cares about social issues and is actively trying to be part of the solution and not the problem.
But bringing Don Lemon to our campus is irrational.
Lemon, who attended the University, was invited to moderate and give an “examination” of the events that unfolded this summer in Baton Rouge for the “Moment or Movement” dialogue.
As part of the University’s response, the “Moment or Movement” dialogue on campus provided an opportunity for students to talk about “identity,” “empowerment” and “justice for all,” as described on the University’s website.
Allowing Lemon to speak on Tuesday and give his interpretation of the “Moment” through the lens of the media is counterproductive.
In the past, Lemon has used his platform to blame blacks — not systemic racism — for why they haven’t advanced in society.
In 2013, after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the killing of Trayvon Martin, Lemon figured he would give five easy steps to fix what was wrong in the black community:
Stop sagging, don’t use the “n-word,” stop littering the communities we live in, finish school and don’t have a baby out of wedlock.
It is simply ludicrous to think that would solve the issues in our country — because, you know, reducing litter in your own neighborhood is going to stop police officers from killing black people.
Lemon is merely a puppet for CNN and a poor representation of the African American race.
Lemon is the last person black people would want to speak on the social change that thousands are protesting and marching for across America.
In 2014 when a video surfaced of Justin Bieber using the “n-word,” Lemon agreed that the popstar had no business using the word. But he again blamed black people for it by insinuating that Bieber was a stepchild of the black community and was “immersed” in black hip hop culture.
Lemon tries to be a journalist, but he fits all the characteristics of a troll.
During a segment on his CNN Tonight show 2015, Lemon went on CNN and held up a sign that read “n—-r” asking the viewing audience the rhetorical question, “Does this offend you?”
That begs me to ask: Whose idea was it to bring this guy anywhere near the University?
Sure, Lemon is a Baton Rouge native and one of the more famous University alums, but that doesn’t make him qualified to speak on our campus.
Too many times in the past, Lemon has used his platform to patronize the black community and climb the totem poll at CNN at the expense of black people.
Sometimes I’m not sure Lemon believes anything that comes out of his own mouth, but his rhetoric complies with the people who think Michael Brown and Eric Garner brought about their own deaths.
I find it hard to believe Lemon was the best the University could do.
If the University wanted a prominent media figure to give his or her perspective from the issues we face in the eyes of a media member, it did a lazy job of finding the right candidate.
Josh Thornton is a 22-year-old communication studies senior from Jacksonville, Florida.