NYU Isn’t Building Racially Segregated Housing
The Claim
New York University is building a residential floor that will be inhabited exclusively by black students.
News posted on
Emerging story
On August 24, 2020, NYU’s weekly newspaper, Washington Square News, published an article on the Black Violets, a student activist group championing racial equality. Among other initiatives, one of their proposals is to have some residential space allocated exclusively to black students.
Some websites wrote their own articles about it, saying that NYU was actively building segregated housing.
The claim was soon picked up by users on social media.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar’s investigation found that the viral claim comes from a misreading of the source material. Most websites source the World Socialist Web Site (WSWS), a non-NYU publication. WSWS mistakenly reported that NYU officials were actively working with the student group and that construction would be complete in 2021. WSWS itself did not link to the Washington Square News, which never reported that the Black Violets had succeeded in their efforts.
The article merely discussed the group, interviewed its leadership, and informed its readership of the group’s agenda. Later, a spokesman for NYU told the press that the university would not be segregating housing and have already rejected the Black Violets’ proposal.
He said: "A story claiming that NYU is implementing 'racial segregation in its dorms' is false and misleading… The University strongly supports the goals of diversity, and of creating an environment that is welcoming, supportive, and inclusive for students of color and students from marginalized communities. However, NYU does not have and will not create student housing that excludes any student based on race."
