Emotions ranged from anger to fear to desperation and hit nearly every benchmark in between as hundreds of students and other members of the campus community at UNC gathered in front of South Building, which houses the offices of top university administrators, on Friday to support their student peers at the University of Missouri.

Listen to the story with voices of students speaking at the rally:

 

UNC students rallied in front of South Building in support of students at the University of Missouri. Photo via Blake Hodge.

Photo via Blake Hodge.

The President of the UM System and the Chancellor of the flagship Columbia campus both resigned last week amid a hunger strike by a student and a threatened boycott from the football program. The students were protesting what they felt was an inadequate response to events that had heightened racial tensions on the Missouri campus.

Students referred to recent events in Chapel Hill, including a pro-confederate rally in front of Silent Sam – after the memorial to UNC students who died fighting for the Confederacy in the Civil War was spray-painted multiple times in recent months – to show that incidents have not been isolated to the University of Missouri.

Listen to the raw audio from the rally. Note – Contains Strong Language:

 

Chancellor Carol Folt speaks with student after rally. Photo via Blake Hodge

Chancellor Carol Folt speaks with student after rally. Photo via Blake Hodge

Chancellor Carol Folt and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Winston Crisp were among the administrators in attendance on Friday, and students took the opportunity to address concerns directly to the campus leadership.

After months of protests, the UNC Board of Trustees voted to change the name of Saunders Hall, named after Confederate Colonel and purported leader of the KKK in North Carolina William L. Saunders, to Carolina Hall.

The next step in the process of efforts to curate the UNC campus is scheduled for this week when a committee is scheduled to present its preliminary work to the Board of Trustees.