Not an unusal to see this flying in windows in West Virginia only on problem…WV fought for the North in the Civil War.

As a West Virginia University graduate I most certainly understand the culture of colleges and universities in the state of West Virginia. According to official records there are TWO HBCU’s (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) in the state of West Virginia, West Virginia State in Charleston and Bluefield State College in Bluefield. Unfortunately there are so few black students from the state going to college and even fewer out of state residents attending these institutions. What has happened is the black student population ratios have shifted dramatically. In the case of Bluefield the college is now a predominantly white institution.

According to a report by WVAVA-TV, “an employee of Bluefield State College has filed a racial-discrimination lawsuit against the West Virginia college…Rebecca Martin, who has worked at the college for more than 25 years, says that she was passed up for two positions, which went to white women.”

This, however is not the first such incident, In 1998 the college was ordered to reinstate a professor who complained about being harassed and fired after he criticized the racial composition of the institution. The college was only 7 percent black compared to 1 percent at WVU yet had no black professors and was collecting over $1 million a year in federal funds for its status as HBCU.

Its a shame but true. West Virginia is a unique place and if you’ve ever stayed longer than a few days you’ll see that racism ISN’T an issue. WHY? Because people are racist, yes but no one gives a damn white or black its the norm and they dare anyone to do anything about it. Shout to Eugene over at YBP Guide for a heads up on this one. Its a great blog by the way so you should add it to you’re daily reads they update about once or twice daily and key in on important issues facing the young black professionals.