Banner removed after conservative answers race relations prompt

A Texas college removed a banner inviting insights on racial relations just one day after a student added a conservative response to the prompt.

“Have racial relations reverted to the past? If so, what is causing it?” the banner asked, inviting responses from students at Lone Star College-Tomball, a community college in Harris County, Texas. 

[RELATED: Brown students: Improving race relations more important than free speech]

Though it had been in place throughout the last month, student Quade Lancaster told Campus Reform that the banner was mysteriously torn down almost immediately after he added his commentary last week, claiming that the school likely “destroyed it.”

Lancaster wrote comments such as “Conservative gays stand with Trump,” “We the people! One Nation Under God!” and “Make America Great Again.” 

He also added a lengthy comment addressing the topic of racial relations, opining that “free markets, laissez faire capitalism, and free enterprise of the Western world” could be harnessed to provide opportunities for all Americans, “regardless of skin color.”

“The information that so many spread through biased media outlets is a lie,” Lancaster wrote in marker, concluding that “we are all Americans and we are and always will be one nation under God.” 

The school removed the banner one day later, Lancaster told Campus Reform on Monday. 

Campus Reform reached out to the school to ask why the banner was removed when it was, but did not receive a response despite repeated requests. 

Lancaster explained that he “weighed in on the banner because students were blaming President Trump for racism in America and there was nothing based on fact,” saying he wanted to provide a different perspective for fellow students. 

Lancaster said he’s disappointed that his message was removed so quickly, but not surprised, given his previous experience with the administration.

[RELATED: Conservative student cries foul after school revokes award]

As Campus Reform reported last month, Lancaster was demoted from his position as President of Student Government shortly after expressing support of the Second Amendment. And last week, an administrator revoked a “student excellence” award he was slated to receive the very day he showed up to the award ceremony. 

“I asked about it [a few days later], and was told it was an invitation error and that I was not technically supposed to receive an award, which is obviously a lie because I was nominated a very long time ago,” Lancaster said. 

He noted that the staffer who told him he was nominated in error was Shannon Marino, the same staffer who demoted him from SGA in April. That staffer works in the Student Life Office, which Lancaster contends also manages the hallway that tore the banner down. 

Lancaster claims this is all part of the school’s ongoing discrimination against conservative students. Lone Star-Tomball administrators, for their part, have declined numerous opportunities to provide a response to any of Lancaster’s claims. 

Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @Toni_Airaksinen