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Homecoming Queen Controversy Erupts at Hampton University UPDATE: Churchill Sorry For Letter
October 13th, 2009
I’m sure no one on the campus of Hampton University, one of the nation’s leading Historical Black College and Universities (HBCU’s) expected their annual Homecoming Pageant to become national news.
But when a non-African-American woman is crowned Homecoming Queen then writes a letter to the President of the United States complaining about the racial overtones on campus…it becomes national news.
Nikole Churchilll, a 22-year-old senior nursing major became the first non-African-American to be named Ms. Hampton in the history of the institution on Friday.
While her victory has split the campus with some saying she does not deserve the award because of her Guam and Italian ancestry as well as attending classes at the Virgina Beach satellite campus instead of the main campus, her letter to the President is seemingly causing the most angst.
In her letter to Obama, written Sunday, she said her victory was the best moment in here life, however the attitudes of some students on campus has sullied her victory.
“It would be much easier to say that possibly some were not accepting of the news because I wasn’t the most qualified contestant; however, the true reason for the disapproval was because of the color of my skin. I am not African American.”
Churchill, like Obama, is a Hawaii native and is hoping the President will speak to students about racism.
There has been no response from the White House. (The Administration is a little busy right now with dealing with two wars, health care and the economy.)
Being a proud HBCU graduate myself, I’ve seen enough examples to know Homecoming pageants always come with some controversy, but get over it. The judges voted for the woman they believe to be the most qualified. There is no rule against a student attending classes on a satellite campus being Homecoming Queen.
Did she overreact by writing the President? Perhaps, but she is an American citizen with the right to contact her elected officials at her desire.
By the way, the coronation is Oct. 21.
UPDATE: Churchill Apologizes for Letter
D*MN we’re still talking about this?
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The light skin, dark skin issue has been around since slavery times. The woman who use this equation to determine who is better looking is fulfilling a legacy of Capt William Lynnch. You know house hand, field hand. We as a people have to move beyond this and look at the real meanings behind some of our attitudes. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and choosing a home coming queen should not be determined by outer beauty solely. Using the criteria used to determine the Queen is only feeding the stereo type. CHANGE THE CRITERIA that way you change the mind. Remember what you are there in that institution of higher learning for. A MIND IS A TERRIBLE THING TO WASTE
Why would you contact the President of the United States and not speak directly to the student body. “We don’t shake hands on campus…we hug” was our school way of doing things and it is still embraced to this day. We represent a standard of excellence.
The students, and I know because I have family who attends now, had issues with her being a Senior Transfer student who just arrived on campus in Septemeber(satelite location) and was allowed to participate with the students who been there since freshman , sophmore years and who have been preparing for this for years. She doesn’t know the student body, having participated in campus activities. MR. HAMPTON UNIVERSITY IS ASIAN and THE STUDENTS EMBRACED HIM BECAUSE THEY KNEW HIM!!!!!!BUTYOU DON’T HERE THAT IN THE NEWS. THE STUDENTS ARE UPSET because she painted a horrible image about HU which is not true.
ITS FUNNY HOW YOU WON THE TITLE ON A FRIDAY AND WROTE THE LETTER ON A SUNDAY…..HOW MUCH TORMENT WERE YOU GOING THROUGH FOR YOU TO WRITE PRESIDENT IN ONE DAY!!! YOU HAD IT PLAN GIRL..
OH, DID I MEANTION THAT MISS HAMPTON UNIVERSITY COMPETES IN THE MISS VIRGINIA PAGEANT, THEN MISS AMERICA PAGEANT…HMMMMMMMMM…..I GUESS YOUR PLATFORM WILL BE “DIVERSITY”.
SOUNDS LIKE YOU SET THIS UP!
Homecoming should be interesting.
Sisters, learn from her what she learned on the Islands — We may all be living elsewhere soon. Next time, don’t get hung up on hair & skin colour! H-
Check this out from Cameo!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jr7USTe0EmQ
Wow racism is really alive and thriving. OK i get now we can be racist towards whites, she was right for asking Obama to help. This university is loaded with racists.
As said prior, HOWARD UNIVERSITY is the real HU.
It is questionable to me why the panel would pick a non black female to represent an HBCU.Was this some kind of political stunt? No white school would have picked a black female to represent a predominately white school. This is reality as it is today. It also amazes me that so many of you young black people are so willing to accept this slap in the face or the fact that you don’t realize that it is a slap in the face. I do not see this as a positive image for Hampton at all!
Monie Said on October 14th, 2009 Answer me this if darker skin is so unattractive why do white women sit in the sun to get darker or go to a tanning booth to get something black women already have. ============
That comment is about as ignorant as me saying if “black women are so proud of who they are, then why do they due their hair blonde? Why do they wear white peoples clothes, listen to white peoples music, read white peoples books and magazines and prefer to go to schools dominated primarily with whites than with blacks.” Monie, you may want to think long and hard about your ignorant comment, as it serves as a definition of you! BTW….white people do not go to tanning beds to become as dark as black people; it is impossible for white people to become this dark anyway!
BlackBabyBoomer Said on October 17th, 2009 It is questionable to me why the panel would pick a non black female to represent an HBCU.Was this some kind of political stunt? No white school would have picked a black female to represent a predominately white school. This is reality as it is today. It also amazes me that so many of you young black people are so willing to accept this slap in the face or the fact that you don’t realize that it is a slap in the face. I do not see this as a positive image for Hampton at all!
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Interesting and IGNORANT! Maybe with all of your intelligence you can explain the Miss BLACK USA Pageant!? Then, and please do not hurt your brain thinking about this, maybe you can explain how there are black contestants in the Miss USA pageant. TO add to this, explain how it is that there have been blacks whom have won the Miss USA pageant.
Maybe with my lottery winnings I should start a Miss WHITE USA pageant, put together a United Caucasian College Fund, start a program for the Advancement of WHITE People, and instead an Ebony Magazine and BET I will put together an Ivory Magazine and a Caucasian Entertainment Network!
Double Standards does not advance any group-ever! When the vast majority of the black race wakes up an realizes this, the better off we will be!
to be honest, the black women were ugly; and I’m a black man saying this. If that’s what black women look like at Hampton then you’ll have a non black women win every year. People need to get over it. She deserved to win. Ms Churchill should ignore the haters on campus and worry about more important things.
Jairaun, great post. Bless you. I love your spirit and attitude. Good luck to you.
Nice little quip that the White House is “busy” in re two wars, the economy, etc. First, if you know of any action the White House has taken in re the “two wars,” by all means post it. Thus far, the White House has not undertaken any action whatsoever and remains impotent as ever.
Second, the White House was not “too busy” to respond when Henry Gates was arrested; even when Obama admitted he did not “have all the facts” and was “not there.” Yet a prompt, asinine response was issued.
Why no response here?
To the student body – get over it and get over yourselves. This girl was elected and won. Period. Any quibble over the results is racism plain and simple.
Howard U has always been, is now and will continue to be the only true real HU.
To BlackBabyBoomer :
Hey black girls win beauty contest at mostly white universities all the time.
Another thing… why do black NBA and NFL players select white women to marry over black women?
It should have been no big deal. Heck, if she is a student at a Historically Black College, what is the issue? Is it in the contest bylaws that she MUST be African-American to win? I assume that she has an appreciation for the African-American culture if she even applied for admission to Hampton. Now if she didn’t and was “spewing venom” on the campus there would be reason to challenge her ability to represent Hampton. Some of us, as African-Americans, need to put a check on our own biases. I think she overreacted by writing the President about the issue, though. She should have requested a forum on the campus with the student council to talk about their concerns. Then the leaders should have addressed the student body.
So let me get this straight. People are appalled that the white girl who got discriminated against would write a letter to the president looking for help. However, people were applauding when the President came out against a white police officer for doing his job in arresting a black harvard professor. So now because it’s a white person being discrimanated against the president’s time is too valuable to respond? He was a pretty busy man back then but he took time out of addressing the country to make his stance known… This is interesting
Well dummies did you vote for who you wanted, or once it again were you all so envy of each other that you rather another race when the race. Dummies stop being so jealous and envy of each other you will see your own crown. How stupid do you all look to the world? VERY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!………Rather vote someone else than your own. I bet most of the black strong wanna be a real black man voted. I guess an explanation of how this vote go down is next huh. Who gives a flying piece of dog doody!!! What is done is done, and its not what it is, so dont shout that country black crap either.
Can we have a HWCU? A Historical White College and University? I’m white. I want one. And if you tell me I can’t have one, you’re being racist. There I said it. So explain to me why in the hell blacks need their own colleges? You want to preach inclusion, try living it first. I grew up in an integrated school, and I go to McNeese State University, which is a good mix of all races. It just seems crazy to me that HBCU can actually exist in this country any more. Everyone claims that whites re the ones who keep segregation going. Sure, there are a few intolerant bigots out there on the white side. But reading stuff like this convinces me that there is an equal number on the black side.
I see no reason why this young lady should feel that she must apologize for reacting to what she felt in her heart was a very hurtful and unfair experience. As for her writing to the president, American citizens do that all of the time, many about far more trivial matters. It is their right to do so, and it is then his choice as to how he will respond ( or even if he WILL respond). Those of us who were among the “firsts” as a result of the Civil Rights Movement know the pain and sometimes the astonishment felt when we were rejected and/or mistreated because of our physical traits, with “trumped up” so- called “legal” explanations to cover for what we knew was pure prejudice and racism. Although our battle is still not over, to some degree “the shoe now is on the other foot” in some situations. African Americans now must show that they can be better than the bigots who had the same kinds of attitudes toward them.