Last week I drew a cartoon making fun of our Campus Alert system and its common description of criminals on the loose.

I recieved angry calls and Tweets focused on that cartoon. Apparently some people think I’m racist because of it.

Take a look at my column picture. See that? I’m black, about 6’1 in height, weighing in at 270 pounds. This description of myself is similar to the Campus Alerts sent to students’ phones when crimes take place. I drew the cartoon with the mission to make fun of the similarities.

Why would I run a “racist” cartoon in Friday’s issue of The Daily Eastern News to spread ignorant fear of people that look like myself?

It’s called sarcasm, people.

I am not trying to spread fear of black males on this campus. It makes no sense for a man to make a concentrated and creative effort to condemn himself on the wide platform of a campus newspaper read by thousands, many of which see me marching through campus each day.

I encourage people to use a journalistic sense in passing judgment, which involves seeing things for what they are. If you use your comprehension skills in this way, misunderstandings are minimized.

I’m writing this column to explain, not to apologize. I don’t like how people jump to conclusions with such enthusiasm. This is the adult world. Your feelings are going to get hurt sometimes.

Racism will always be an issue, but what I drew wasn’t racist and only commented on the Campus Alert trends. If you think you’ve experienced ‘racism’ at Eastern, I encourage you to take a trip down to my family’s home of Mississippi. You’ll find that any ‘racism’ you’ve experienced here is flowers and cupcakes compared to the Deep South.

I drew what I drew because I found it funny that I guessed the description of the suspect of one alert before even reading it. I was amused, and drew it in a way that people may find funny. Plenty of people did indeed find it quite funny.

Anyone angry with me might have had a better sense of humor if they weren’t so quick to judge. You know who else is quick to judge? Racists are. If you judge things to quickly, you can fall into the same category of the people you are so enthusiastic to put down. Sharing qualities with an enemy doesn’t look good when you start attacking them. Before becoming critical, take a quick look in the mirror.

So, ladies and gentlemen of Charleston, please note the drawing was not meant to be serious.

I’m sure that if the individual(s) responsible for the crimes in town continue, an arrest will follow.

I find the panicked responses to this alert funny. Not because I find crime funny, but because I’m from the south side of Chicago, the most dangerous urban environment in the nation. The Charleston community is quite safe. So, take a deep breath, practice a little discretion and you’ll be just fine.

If anyone is still mad at me feel free to shoot me an e-mail. I’ll respond politely and thoroughly.

Joshua Bryant is a senior journalism major. He can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].