Tim Foley –
Black Lives Matter. That was the message on Tuesday afternoon at the Unity Rally on the Quad organized by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. One of the leading figures who helped coordinate the event was Muhammad Mahmood, a junior special education major who is a part of the Fitchburg State University Football team. 
Mahmood knew he wanted to bring a rally to campus after seeing the public unrest brought on by the events of this past summer. “I saw many people hurting,” said Mahmood “It wasn’t breaking news, but it was about time it started breaking hearts.” 
Mahmood himself spoke at the rally, alongside a list of influential voices on campus. Speakers included Associate Director of Student Development Shane Franzen, Associate Dean of Student Development Dr. Hank Parkinson, Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Laura Bayless, Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Alberto Cardelle, Athletic Director Matt Burke, and FSU Chief of Police Michael Cloutier. Many prominent student voices were present as well, including SGA representative Dimitri Moore, Black Student Union Vice President Crystal Aneke, and Kyle Colon, a Criminal Justice major in the police academy program who introduced each speaker and led the rally with chants. 
Hank Parkinson spoke after the fact about the campus’ commitment to change. 
“This event continues to prove and I hope to show that we are serious, we are here, we’re not staying silent, and we’re going to create change, positive change,” said Parkinson. “We already are making changes. We’re looking at our policies and procedures through an equitable lens, making sure what we do is equitable for all. That’s just one of the many things that I’m doing and we’re doing to do better.” Parkinson went on to reassert a claim he made during his speech which was that “we can do better, I can do better.”