By Yonathan Shimelis

From the murder of 1st Lt. Richard Collins to the 2017 discovery of a noose in Phi Kappa Tau’s fraternity house, The University of Maryland has a history of hate bias-related incidents.

But these incidents are not a thing of the past. UMD Bias Incident Support Services’s latest annual report saw 79 hate bias incidents logged and 113 reports received. BISS, a division of the university’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion, is working to help students and faculty deal with hate bias.

Brian Medina, whose pronouns are ze/hir/hirs, is the program manager at BISS. Medina said ze hopes to create a more welcoming campus environment for all students.

“Prior to BISS existing the campus had a hate bias response team … this includes resident assistance, student conduct, the police, counseling center. And for some folks there’s fear in reporting to an agency in that way,” Medina said.

Students can get involved through the Stop the Hate training programs, which are hosted by Medina.

The training programs were started by Neijma Celestine-Donnor, the founder of BISS, which was previously known as the Hate Bias Response Program.

The goal was to teach UMD community members to better understand the definitions and impact of hate bias. Participants simulate reacting to hate bias incidents such as a professor repeatedly using the wrong pronouns.

Medina has continued the programs Celestine-Donnor started since ze arrived at UMD in April 2020.

The most recent training was held Tuesday through Zoom. It focused on the differences between hate bias and hate crimes.

Tuesday was the first training for Beatrice Hammett, a senior community health major and resident assistant. She was familiar with Medina through her RA orientation, but had not been involved with BISS before.

“We had a bias incident last fall pertaining to a student who identified as Jewish, and they had a hate symbol drawn on their whiteboard … we’re kind of just one part of the process,” Hammett said.

Students can also get involved by working for BISS.

Alex Franklin, a higher education master’s student, has been working for BISS since the fall of 2020. Franklin helps raise awareness about BISS as a resource for students and faculty.

“I had never been to a school that had an office of diversity and inclusion and an office for bias response,” Franklin said.

Franklin said he has experienced bias firsthand. It is one of the reasons he joined BISS.

“I want to do my part in giving students an environment in which they can explore themselves and grow into who they feel they really are,” Franklin said.

The Office of Diversity & Inclusion is located in Marie Mount Hall. Bias incidents can be reported online at the office’s website. Photo by Yonathan Shimelis.