By Alexander Wilson-
Appalled University students in Washington DC have been pitching tents and sleeping in hallways to protest ‘inhumane’ living conditions in dorms.
More than 100 students in Howard University, where parents are paying in excess of £9,300 a year, are protesting appalling housing conditions, with claims of rats, cockroaches, mould and mushrooms in their rooms affecting their quality of life.
The aggrieved pupils claim they have been threatened with disciplinary action over their protests.
Utilizing social media apps like Instagram and TikTok under the #Blackburntakeover, as many as 150 students have been staging a sit-in at Howard’s Blackburn University Center, described as the “social hub of the university” by Howard.
The students are protesting deplorable housing conditions, including mold on expired air filters, rat and cockroach infestations, and mushrooms blooming on dorm room ceilings and under sinks, despite on-campus housing costing upwards of $12,000 a year
The #Blackburntakeover has been shared on social media, with students sharing photos from the two-week protest. As well as pitching tents on the grounds of the university, they’ve also been sleeping in the Blackburn University Centre.
Students sleeping at Blackburn University Centre
There are also horrifying stories of mould spreading onto people’s shoes and clothes, and mushrooms being spotted under the sink and poorly maintained plumbing. Others say they’ve been forced to deal with rats and mice in their rooms, the New York Post reports.
When a similar protest occured in England at the University College Of London, the affected students were compensated £100,000.
Similar calls for compensation are already being discussed by unhappy students who feel they are not getting their money’s worth of accommodation.