Orga nization Andrew Kenway Guest Contributor he sudden and oddly synchronized rise of white student unions across North America, from UBC to Berkley, might seem a little odd to the standard university attendee. However, the UBC White Student Union’s Facebook page intends to make clear their supposedly good intentions with an opening post that was, oddly enough, a press statement. Their first post, is entirely about explaining how they’re not really racist, and essentially trying to justify their existence. So, is the sudden rise of the UBC White Student Union a reactionary group of injured students, a lazy internet troll-job, a growing group of White Nationalists or a group who believes they represent the persecuted, disenfranchised white students of UBC? The group can not be called anything but reactionary at best, but they lay out the main reason for their existence from an anonymous person who runs the page. “Firstly, white students at UBC are now an ethnic minority. Unlike other ethnic and cultural groups, we have no organized lobby for our interests. Some have replied that this is unnecessary because there are many white people present in the university’s administration and student union. We believe that this is illegitimate on its face. There are many Chinese individuals present in business and political institutions in Vancouver; does this mean that they represent Chinese people and their interests? To assert such a thing would be reprehensible.” They are not wrong, according to a statistic they have been highly marketing on their own page, UBC’s student population is now 33% Asian, leaving the Caucasian populace in the dust at second with 32%. This is proof to them that white people are now a dangerously underrepresented group. One could easily be quick to point out to them, though, that student unions for specific European groups are not frowned upon. For many, it is a place for them to meet others from their home country and feel some semblance of comfort and safety. To them, this one percent is an injustice in the current social climate. The problem with the White student union is that it is exclusively about race. One of the other major defenses made for the group is that it is not wrong to be proud of our whiteness while erasing guilt for errors caused by ancestors hundreds of years ago. This ignores many other current cultural racial issues. The residential schools of Canada are only a few decades old, as an obvious example. However, it is not addressed. Almost nothing is, except for being proud of being white. If somebody publically discussing White Pride sets off red flags in your head, you have probably read a history book. The group seems to suggest that only crippling guilt or unwavering pride are emotional options for one’s ancestry, and it is critical of the former. Those statistics, while a little underwhelming, appear to have spurred a group of students to the length of creating a union. Except, of course, for the fact the UBC denies that any such union exists, and makes it clear that they would not allow the group to form an official club. There is no word on whether or not they have | i even tried to create one officially. So if it is possible that it is not coming from the students at all, then where is it coming from? Interestingly enough, the Washington Post’s Yanan Wang examines it in an article whose title raises an eyebrow all on its own: “More Than 30 Purported “White Student Unions” Pop Up Across the Country”. Keep in mind, that is 30 exclusively across the United States. They received an email from Andrew Anglin, a man who runs a notorious neo-nazi blog called The Daily Stormer that you would do yourself a favour to never visit. He says he has been advocating such groups for years, and has a message a bit more direct than that of the UBC student union: “Whites need to organize and protect their interests in the face of rising Black terrorism. The goal of a White Student Union would be to push back against this, and also to show Whites across the country that it is okay to be White, it is okay to defend your history and your civilization.” If you feel uncomfortable taking the word of a man who takes ordinarily unpalatable Islamophobia and tries to pump it up into full-on racism, you are probably a human being with a soul. His blog is one of the few frequented sites visited by one Dylann Roof, the Charleston church shooter. In contrast, the UBC White Student Union page never says anything negative about other races. Honestly, it says barely anything at all. Its aforementioned ‘press release’ opening post is a cautious, mealy mouthed appeal to even exist, as if to get their foot in the door. Even a cursory examination of many of the group’s Facebook supporters shows that most of them do not go to the school. It also never “UBC White Stu Organization a nt Union globalnews.ca brings up anything about White Nationalism, nor makes even a meager attempt to distance itself from the movement. In keeping with the White Nationalist movement’s traditions, some of the supporters do not seem to be supportive of all of their white brethren. “The Whites with all the negative comments are self deprecating fools that suffer from white guilt disease,” is a mild example. Anyone who does not tow the party line is considered to be delusional or weak. It is impossible to know how coordinated all of this is, but one can easily find a link to a Vancity Buzz article’s poll on a 4chan board called /pol. This board is primarily a white nationalism space -- /pol stands for “Politically incorrect” which is an understatement. The groups can easily read as a simple rebranding of White Nationalism, and if they are going to try to prove to be anything different, that will be up to the groups. However, the usual tactics of White Nationalists in the internet age that focus on internet mobbing and anonymity still seem to be in play, but with an odd, palpable aura of forced politeness. So follow the story as it grows if you are interested in seeing a bunch of sick, hateful people forced to grit their teeth and be polite. Many outlets have just considered them a hoax. There are not that many students who want a White Student Union at UBC, most of them are trolls or anonymous cowards hiding in the depths of the Internet. As for the few unfortunate folks pulled in by promises of White Pride, hopefully they notice who they are talking to before it is too late.