The ongoing racist history of the South reflected in our campus building names

Objects, names and words have the power to elicit emotion just as much as voices. It has been nearly four years since the world’s largest racial movement that also became a primary concern within the grounds of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. 

During the summer of 2020, an online petition started by a UL Lafayette African American undergraduate, Paul Richard–now alum, circulated through the college community. The petition brought to attention the names of certain university buildings which belonged to individuals with racist histories.

In uproar of racial inequity throughout the community and in response to the petition, UL Lafayette President Joseph Savoie launched a task force committee in 2020 to conduct thorough research about the honorees whose names are engraved into the campus buildings. 

The task force consisted of one undergraduate student, one graduate student, a UL Lafayette alum and five professors.

After nearly a year of research, a comprehensive report detailing the building names of concern was submitted to the UL Lafayette administration. 

Since the submission of the report, the then undergraduate, graduate, alum as well as two professors have left the task force due to graduating or new employment. The task force remains with three professors: Dr. Maria Seger, Dr. Michael Martin and Dr. Jordan Kellman.

Seger, associate professor of English and undergraduate studies coordinator for the English department, shared more on the task force and the steps taken since its assembly in 2020.

“The goal of the task force was to generate principles by which buildings should be named at the university and to evaluate existing building names; to undertake research to see whether the names of existing buildings conformed to the principles or whether they deviated from them. And if they deviated from those principles, to recommend removing those names and suggest alternate names that might be more appropriate,” said Seger.

After a year of research and further studies into the names of these honored individuals, a report detailing the findings was submitted to the UL Lafayette administration nearly three years ago. Seger elaborated on the progress since its submission.

“We did submit it on June 14, 2021. We met with the provost on Apr. 13, 2022 to discuss the report and then we met with the provost and the president on Nov. 9, 2022 to discuss the report. I have not been communicated with since then about the report.”

Seger also expressed the role of symbolism and its reflection of ideals and how it applies to the current circumstance of having controversially-viewed individuals represent the university at hand .

“Symbols are often a reflection of what we believe, value and honor and those have material consequences. Sometimes symbolic change precedes material change and sometimes it follows it,” Seger said.

“Symbols can cause a kind of violence and especially in the south, they are markers of ownership of public space. When an enslavers’ name is on a building, it says, ‘This is a White space. Everyone else who is here is trespassing.’ And what does it mean to walk into a building of education knowing that?” Seger concluded.

The task force found the following building names to be problematic: Foster Hall, DeClouet Hall, Buchanan Hall, Bittle Hall, Mouton Hall, Montgomery Hall, Fletcher Hall and Saucier Wellness Center.

Martin, professor of history, further elaborated on the history of Foster Hall.

Foster Hall, one of the oldest buildings at UL Lafayette, was first named the Boys’ Dormitory in 1902 before changing to Foster Hall in honor of Gov. Murphy J. Foster in 1921. Foster was the first to sign legislation–authored by state senator Robert Martin, honored by Martin Hall– that created the Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute (SLII), the now UL Lafayette, in 1898. 

According to Martin, the controversiality of Foster Hall stems from Gov. Foster’s persistent involvement in segregation in Louisiana. Foster signed the state’s first segregation law, having been a political figure who has actively fought to maintain anti-racial efforts. His involvement in white supremacist groups, such as the Knights of the White Camelia, furthered the latter.

With the history gathered from the task force, Foster Hall remains one of the most controversial buildings they suggest the administration take immediate action upon.

Students throughout the university seem to still have mixed feelings when speaking of such change, where some support the changing of names and its reasons while others voice that it is merely in the past.

Kellman, professor of history and previous dean of the College of Liberal Arts, further commented on the importance of separating the past and present of history, specifically in terms of racism. 

“It’s not in the past. These are names that adorn buildings that students walk through everyday today, and the university is putting these names forth as heroes to emulated by our students. You are taking something from the past and making a statement about it in the present,” Kellman said.

“It’s easy for many people to say the wounds of slavery and racism in our country are in the past and it’s best to leave them in the past and not dig that up. When we do that, we bury the damage of those relationships and deprive people of the chance to reckon with, analyze and understand the experiences that got us to where we are.”

The Building Names Task Force responded and completed their initiative as soon as they were brought into existence, with a massive amount of research orchestrated by UL Lafayette students, professors and an alum to address a pressinging circumstance that was not only significant four years ago, but still leaves a mark today. The report the task force submitted to the administration nearly three years ago has rather become an artifact of history, a potential to bring change that remains confined.