A private, off-campus housing unit for students at the University of California, Berkeley drew attention for allegedly banning white people from some common spaces. The brouhaha began when a screenshot of the unit’s house rules made the rounds on social media.
The guest rules for residents of the so-called “Person of Color Theme House” — a five-story, 30-room structure near the UC campus, according to the New York Post — were posted to Reddit and reportedly include announcing when guests are in common spaces “and if they are white” and that whites “are not allowed in common spaces.” The rules reflect the house’s efforts to protect residents from “white violence.”
“Many POC members moved here to be able to avoid white violence and presence, so respect their decision of avoidance if you bring white guests,” an intro to the alleged rules states.
The meaning of “white violence” and what that might include sparked debate and complaints online. One subreddit asked, “How do you feel about the ‘POC Themed Housing’ at UC Berkeley?”
“I saw several articles and photos of a house in Berkeley that explicitly prohibits white tenants, as well as heavily restricting visitation for white guests, including prohibiting them from any common areas,” the post said. “Isn’t that illegal? Doesn’t that fall under the Fair Housing Act?”
Some students alleged that even biracial and light-skinned people of color risked being ostracized at the POC house. Critics of the rules condemned them as purely racist and just another form of segregation.
The POC Theme House was built as part of the Berkeley Student Cooperative that offers housing for low-income and minority students in the Bay Area and is not affiliated with the school, the College Post reported. The co-op’s anti-discrimination policy bans residential restrictions based on race or skin color.
After the list was leaked, a manager told the College Fix that there’s no “official” policy that excludes white visitors and claimed that whites can and do live in the POC Theme House.
