University of Maine commences Black History Month with raising of BLM flag

On Feb. 1, the University of Maine raised a “Black Lives Matter” flag on its Orono campus to celebrate the beginning of February as Black History Month.

The ceremony was hosted by the university’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI), which, according to its website, “serves as a vital and integral resource for students and employees in the areas of equity, inclusion, and diversity.”

In a Feb. 2 Facebook post, the school shares a picture of the flag raising, with the flag placed immediately outside the university bookstore. “Yesterday, the UMaine Community celebrated the start of Black History Month with the annual raising of the Black Lives Matter flag in the Memorial Union,” the post reads.

Facebook users quickly posted critical responses to the raising of the BLM flag displayed prominently on Maine’s campus.

“So disappointed that UMaine chose to hoist the flag of a corrupt corporation who publicly supports terrorists,” Facebook user Amy Rebecca wrote. “There are thousands of different ways you could’ve chosen to support Black History Month, but instead you chose this. How do you think this will make your student body targeted by this group feel? So much for DEI.”

Another Facebook user named Elizabeth Ann commented on the post: “Considering the imprisonment of several of the founders of the BLM foundation for their siphoning of funds, there are much better ways to uplift and support the Black community for Black history month. A flag that supports this contentious organization is incongruous to the genuine support of Black history month.”

ODI, which organized the flag-raising, states on its website that it is committed to supporting “historically underrepresented identities, including but not limited to sexuality, race, gender identity, spirituality, ethnicity, ability, religion, nationality, socio-economic status, and others.”