Eastern’s “We Are EIU” flagpole has been a welcome reminder of our campus’ diversity in the months since it was introduced.

The flagpole was installed after ongoing requests to fly a Black Lives Matter flag on campus so that the flag could be displayed without removing any American flags.

Rightfully, the BLM flag was the first to be flown. Since then, we’ve also seen the LGBTQ+ Progress flag, an Asian Pacific American flag, a Latino Heritage Month flag and others.

As a small campus in a small town, Eastern’s diverse communities have been seen, but often not celebrated.

The We Are EIU flagpole is a simple way to highlight different communities, and anyone can offer suggestions for different flags, though they have to be approved by the Vice President of Student Affairs.

Eastern’s administration has made visible efforts to prioritize underprivileged groups in recent years, such as introducing diversity and inclusion workshops for faculty and adding the Doug DiBianco floor to Eastern’s Living Learning Communities.

They still have steps to take; marginalized students at Eastern still have concerns about safety and sensitivity from their educators.

This isn’t something that can be solved by any single action from the administration.

Instead, we ask that administrators continue to genuinely listen to the worries and needs of students.

Our administration isn’t as diverse as our student body, which may mean that they don’t always directly understand those needs. However, if they continue to be open-minded and communicative, our campus can stay safe.