Members of Black Menaces group gain national attention for TikTok videos intended to hold BYU students and the university accountable for racism.

Date
Apr 22, 2022
Type
Website
Source
Sebastian Stewart-Johnson
LDS
Hearsay
Journalism
Reference

Viral Videos Show Black Mormon Students Calling Out Racism At PWI, JAM'N 107.5, April 22, 2022, accessed November 19, 2022

Scribe/Publisher
JAM'N 107.5
People
Sebastian Stewart-Johnson, Kylee Shepherd, Nate Byrd, Kennethia Dorsey, Rachel Weaver
Audience
General Public
PDF
Transcription

A group of Black Mormon students is making waves on the internet for calling out racism at Brigham Young University (BYU), NBC News reports.

The Black Menaces, Sebastian Stewart-Johnson, Nate Byrd, Kylee Shepherd, Kennethia Dorsey, and Rachel Weaver, have taken to TikTok to hold their predominately white institution (PWI) accountable for failed diversity and inclusivity efforts.

Byrd, a member of Black Menaces, said to NBC News, “There’s a lot of prejudice and discrimination that goes on here that people don’t know about.” He added, “And so our goal is to let people know that, hey, that exists here, and this is something that needs to change.”

In their TikTok videos, the Black Menaces put their fellow white classmates on the spot with questions about race, identity, and politics. Their account has reached over 670,000 followers and gained 23 million likes as of Friday (April 22).

“The Black Menaces aren’t affiliated with BYU, so they can’t hold our voice back,” Stewart-Johnson said. “We wanted to highlight everything that we go through in a way that millions could see it.”

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