On November 10th, members of GVSU's Black Leadership Coalition (BLC) held an open forum on the problem of racism on Grand Valley’s campus. The forum was a response to several recent incidents on the campus that have caused racial tension. These include racist graffiti at the downtown Pew Campus and an offensive, racially-charged e-mail that was sent to a student in response to a message on the website Facebook. The event was well attended, primarily by members of GVSU’s black community. Students cited lack of education, mainstream media, poor socialization, and systemic, institutional discrimination as problems that allow and/or cause racism to persist. They discussed Grand Valley’s role in combating racism and emphasized the importance of collaboration, openness, a true commitment to diversity (i.e. affirmative action), and education in this endeavor. They also mentioned that racism is a problem that plagues the whole nation, not just Grand Valley.

Many speakers encouraged students to get outside of their comfort zones and make an attempt to experience a variety of people and cultures as a way to foster tolerance. Various people, including Dean of Students Bart Merkle, highlighted the importance of calling attention to and taking action on incidents of racism on campus. The views expressed at the forum will be passed on to Oliver Wilson, Dean of Multicultural Affairs, in an effort to create a dialogue about these issues. Although Wilson is said to be "taking action" on the recent incidents on campus, many students criticized him for not doing enough; some went as far as to say he was failing minority students. The Black Leadership Coalition plans to hold similar forums in the future to further discuss these issues.