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Bad Boy Entertainment: Sean "Diddy" Combs
Squeezing time between his three MTV reality shows, rap entrepreneur and former Howard University student Sean "Diddy" Combs has added his voice – via Twitter – to the student protests currently taking place at his alma mater.
Some 350 students and union workers filled the plaza outside Howard University's Mordecai Johnson Administration Building Friday morning to rage against a litany of problems – including on-campus housing, delays in financial aid payments and labor practices.
Although classes at HU started on Aug. 24, thousands of students have yet to be validated in the system – which means they can not register for classes. There are also a reported 500 to 1000 students who were promised campus housing but did not receive it.
Diddy, who took the train to his internship at Uptown Records each week while attending Howard in the late 80s, sent tweets of encouragement to his fellow Bison for nearly two hours on Friday.
"NO JUSTICE! NO PEACE!!! Let me know if yall need me to come down there yall! I got yall BACK! Let's go!!!," tweeted the former business major, who eventually dropped out of Howard to work at his Uptown internship full time.
A follow up tweet stated: "Do what we did and take IT OVER!!!! Let's go! And do it in a peaceful way but DO IT!! ... If your at HU go to the A building now and make sure they feel you!!! And send me updates!!! Let's go!"
A university spokeswoman said the Office of the Provost had a sit down with student leadership Friday, and a second meeting is planned for this week, with the president and senior leadership present to discuss student concerns and solutions.
"We take the concerns raised by our students very seriously, and the university is committed to providing a high-quality education and first-rate student support services," she said in a statement.
Student organizers have given the administration until Wednesday, Sept. 9, to answer their complaints. Below, an HU student explains what led to the protest.
Washington's ABC 7 News (WJLA) reports
Video from students at the protest
For more info:
Diddy's MTV series "Starmaker"
Diddy's MTV series "Making His Band"
Diddy's Bad Boy-produced MTV series "Daddy's Girls"
Diddy on Twitter
Howard's Fall 2009 "Calendar & Events" schedule
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