After five days of student protesters refusing to leave the administration building, Duke University’s president announced Wednesday evening several steps intended to improve working conditions on the North Carolina campus. Protesters refused to leave unless other demands were met — a shorter list than they had originally presented but one which pressed for concrete action rather than task forces. The group, Duke Students & Workers in Solidarity, formed after the student newspaper the Chronicle reported complaints from workers about a pattern of racism and hostility in the Parking and Transportation Services department and a 2014 incident in which a white administrator at Duke allegedly hit a black contract employee with his Porsche and said a racial slur. Tallman Trask III, executive vice president at Duke, said he hit Shelvia Underwood accidentally but denied using a racial slur.  He apologized Monday, saying his conduct fell short of the civility and respect owed to one another at Duke.

April 7, 2016 ・ From The Washington Post