Twenty-six years ago this week, students expressed their dissatisfaction with College policies by staging a "lock up" in Converse Hall. The Black Student Union (BSU) had made five demands of President John William Ward that had not been met, and in response, 40-50 students chained themselves in the building following a speech made by Harold Massey '80. Ward spoke to a rally of 400 students in front of Converse stating that he would not respond to this coercion. The administration threatened to suspend all students still occupying Converse after 1 p.m. the following day. "We weren't making any progress, and they put off a decision until Wednesday," said BSU spokesperson Teah Duncan '81.

The BSU detailed its demands in a 10-page report, which requested College endorsement and funding of the early Black Freshman Orientation program. This request was contrary to Ward's decision to combine this smaller orientation group with the larger orientation program for all new students. Ward stated that in principle, this raised the question of whether the College should deal with "elements of racism as an institutional problem" or "only by forewarning Blacks" of its existence at the College. Additional demands by the BSU included more student input into the selection of deans and faculty and a greater role in the recruitment and selection of the dean of minority affairs, which could then potentially lead to more Third World students at the College. Black students also demanded more Third World faculty, an expansion of the Black Studies department and the inclusion of more Third World authors in the curriculum.

Controversial questions about race relations at the College had begun about a week earlier when a burning cross was found outside Charles Drew House. Ward said that he had received a tip that the cross had been placed there by a member of the house, and students and faculty alike displayed their anger at the incident. Members of the BSU made a statement expressing their disappointment with the act and denied any involvement with the perpetrators. The subsequent "lock up" about a week later was just another example of the College's struggle to deal with important questions of race and diversity in a way that would benefit all students.