Ms. UNC
Can a Black Queen Really be a Representative
of the Entire University?
By Sylvia Glover and Cheritta Pridgen
Each year, students, alumni, faculty and friends
gather at the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill to celebrate homecoming which
consists of a week of student activities that ends with
the football game held on Saturday.
As we fill the stands, shouting and screaming we
are anticipating maybe more than winning the
gameothe crowning of the next Ms. UNC. This time
in the game is usually filled with joy and happiness
for the winner. However, this feeling has been over
shadowed for the past few years by the tension over
the controversy of racial background being a factor in
the outcome of the election. This is due in part to the
issue of the homecoming queen being black.
On Oct. 27, an “Around the Circle” was held in
the Sonja Haynes Stone Black Cultural Center that
addressed homecoming and the issue of; “Does a
black Ms. UNC represent the University as a whole?”
There were many strong feelings on the subject of
how effectively a black person could represent the
school. This school is culturally diverse, so whatever
race is crowned as queen, they cannot fully represent
all people found at this university.
A homecoming queen should not be viewed by her
race, but for what she represents and her character.
The University needs a person that can exemplify a
positive nature in which she can be a representative so
the school’s community can be proud.
The issue is that people do not realize that the race
controversy reveals the hidden prejudices that people
have but do no want to admit.
Ernest Almond, a junior said, “If this campus is as
open-minded as it is supposed to be, how does race
affect who should win?” However, the problem is
that people do not want to admit that they are not as
open-minded as they should be.
It is important to have a queen who is academical
ly inclined, but also one that is involved in the com
munity. Recently, there have been changes in the
Carolina Athletic
Association process. The
GPA requirement has been raised; the proportion of
the voting has changed to include 75 percent ot the
student body and 25 percent of the faculty.
Carol Ben-Davies, a BCC employee, said; “Ms.
UNC has been top-notch, since 1 came (to UNC-CH)
in 1995. People do not realize that the past black
queens have been women of substance.” For instance,
Janora McDuffie, Ms. UNC 1998, was senior class
vice president as well as a Morehead Scholar. She
was not only intelligent, but a leader as well. No one
ever stops to think that black queens in the past have
been equally or better qualified than their opposition.
Race should not be a factor in the homecoming
election. However, there are still many individuals
who complain. For those people who feel the need to
complain about it, they should take action. There was
a majority consensus at the “Around the Circle”; If
you do not vote, you cannot complain after the fact.
Last year only 9 percent of the student body voted.
What happened to the rest of the 91 percent of the
students? That is the heart of the problem and the
answer as to why there has been a black queen. The
blacks on campus rally for the support of the candi
dates and encourage each other to vote.
In light of the question stated earlier, does a black
Ms. UNC represent the student body? Absolutely, if
she is qualified for the title; and historically she has
been. Also, there is no reason why a black woman
cannot represent the student body. If race is an
important factor in determining who can represent the
University there could not be a Ms. UNC because this
school has so many ethnic backgrounds represented.
Hence, the quality of the candidate, not her skin
color, should be the sole determinant in whether or
not she can wear the crown and be a positive image
for the University.
December 1999
16
Photo by Tiffany Black