Student Association President-elect Viqar Hussain learned a lesson about public speaking the hard way last week, making two racially insensitive remarks at an SA dinner that have strained his relationship with club members and colleagues.
No one alleges that the comments were intentionally malicious, but those who were offended said the off-color jokes were flat-out shocking and call into question Hussain's leadership and social wherewithal.
"For the rest of his presidency, it's uphill from here, especially with the minority clubs," said Keri-Anne Marshall, coordinator for the People of Color club council.
SA President Dela Yador said Hussain made a tremendous mistake that will put him in a hole before he even takes office, but he stands by the next president's character.
Yador himself was at the center of Hussain's initial remark. Speaking in front of 200 people at SA's club awards and induction dinner, Hussain said he would be a "slave" to the UB community and that he would be working "like a slave" next year.
Hussain then paused and added: "I know I'm not black, but..." He then paused again, waiting for laughter.
"Once he said it, my eyes kind of lit up," said Yador, who is black. "And I'm like, okay, maybe I'm the only one who caught that."
Yador was not the only one.
"Everyone just gasped," said SUNY SA delegate Laura London. Fellow delegate Peter Rizzo said he was stunned.
"However, speaking with him, I concluded he truly didn't understand the impact of his statement," Rizzo said.
"I cannot believe that he didn't understand," Rizzo added.
At one table, someone banged a fist in anger. At another, people walked out. If less conservative people had been there, Marshall said, there might have been violence.
Following the remark, Hussain tried to recover with a joke about Palestinians and their ability to run. He was "trying to get other people to laugh," Yador said, "not knowing he stuck his foot deeper down his throat."
Hussain apologized for offending anyone, saying that was not his intention.
"Everything's just getting taken out of context here," said Hussain, who won a close election in March by 10 votes.
"My interpretation is that I am a slave to the students, and to the general body, and whether or not I agree with the decision the general body is making, I have to follow with it," Hussain said.
When asked about the racial part of the comment, Hussain said: "Truth is, I'm not black and blacks were not the only slaves out there. Hispanics were slaves. Caribbeans were slaves. Even some whites were slaves."
"We're all slaves to God, too," he added.
Immediately following the speech, Hussain was approached by several colleagues about the remarks. Among them was Marshall, who told him he couldn't say things like that, not anywhere.
Hussain apologized, but Marshall said she questioned his sincerity.
"I think he was just saying sorry to cover his ass," she said.
Other SA members were more forgiving. Treasurer Mazin Kased, a Palestinian himself, said he was not offended.
"When you're nervous, that tends to happen," Kased said. "It just came out at the wrong time. It's understandable."
"Some people are not public speakers," he added.
If anything else, Yador said the incident shows Hussain has a lot to learn.
"He didn't meant to insult them, degrade them, he was trying to be funny," Yador said. "He didn't know that's not appropriate."
"He knows this already," Yador continued, "but being on stage he got a little nervous."
Ayo Onikute, coordinator for the Special Interest, Service & Hobbies club council, said it shows Hussain is someone who doesn't take the time to weigh the consequences of what he says.
"In the position he fought to get, you should understand what's an appropriate joke," Onikute said.
The head of the engineering club council, DeJuan LaGuerre, was also amazed that Hussain kept going, seemingly unaware, during his speech, patting Yador on the back after the failed joke.
Said Yador: "It shows that his public speaking needs touching up, not his character."
When asked about the incident, each of the club coordinators shook their heads. Going forward, Hussain isn't "irreparably damaged," Onikute said, "because people who voted for him don't care either way."
Marshall, who said Hussain should have known better from three years at a multicultural campus like UB's, said a public apology would be a good start, but "he's going to have to prove himself from here on in."
"By the time the semester starts in August many people will have forgotten it," Rizzo said. "But I doubt that this will be soon forgotten by those who heard it."
In defending himself, Hussain said he doesn't believe the incident will affect his ability to work with minority clubs in the coming year. But in Onikute's eyes, the fact that Hussain is defending himself and making excuses shows only a further disconnect.
"Accept that you were wrong," Onikute said, "and let's move on."
