The Post-It Note Campaign

There was a bit of a concern on if this article would run. I got confirmation today that it would, so I'm posting my rough draft here and I want to get started with this right away.

The Post-It Note Campaign
Anthony Harris
Opinions Editor
anthonydeanharris@gmail.com

In the ongoing goal of making Morehouse College a better place, I’d like to implement a new strategy. I am going to personally buy packs of Post-It notes and place them all over the campus.

Whenever I encounter some SGA official or some town hall meeting with Morehouse’s president, when the time comes for questions, I never have many, or at least not the one’s I’m shooting for. Perhaps I should blame it on myself for having more to say to my own laptop than to an officials face.

Years ago, I moved into a newly constructed Kaufman Broad Home. I learned that when a home is almost finished with construction, the owner is to walk through the house and place small orange stickers on any imperfections. The construction crew is then to correct anything they missed by looking at the orange dots. I want to do this here, Post-It notes just allow room to actually note what needs correcting.

This is the kind of guerrilla campaign that I feel could be quite useful. Too often we see President Franklin walking through the campus, focused on student welfare and looking so spry. Vice President of Campus Operations Andre Bertrand is focused on improving the campus in every step and is one of the few people I ever see set foot out of Gloster Hall without the sole purpose of fleeing to the parking garage. These are men that I believe are truly focused on improving the campus, I just think a prepared bulleted list may not push things soon enough.

I want us all to spend the month of October (and even longer if need be, I’m sure) to carry packs of Post-It notes. You can support the overpriced bookstore if you choose. There’s a Target opening up at Atlantic Station next month; there’s already one at Edgewood along with an Office Depot. We mustn’t forget the Staples by Lenox (which is also next to a Target). Post-It notes are relatively cheap, adhesive to most surfaces, and the yellow pops out on drab brick patterns.

I can imagine alumni walking about the campus wondering if we added yellow to our maroon and white color during homecoming. I can see a school plastered in scraps of paper all screaming out the errors of the institution. I can foresee various officials complaining directly to me about the nuisance this is, but I can foresee the good that will come of it soon after.

So I make this challenge to you. Post-Its are anonymous in case actually walking on your own grass or marching on Gloster makes you a tad paranoid. They have the potential to be effective. And they’re just enough action that any lazy person could employ.

I’m starting as soon as this paper reaches your eyes (if not sooner) and I hope that many of you join me. With the Student Government Association actually sounding like they want to answer our collective charge, let’s add another spur to the side. With President Franklin asking for serious advice from all of us, let’s bombard him with little scraps of yellow paperwork so he may truly see the urgency of our dissatisfaction.

In conclusion, I would like to preemptively apologize to Initial, our custodial staff. I don’t want to be a burden on you, but I have a feeling this could get something done and I want you all to bear with us in this time. You all do good work for not enough benefit and it must be a serious hassle to clean up after 2,900 Black men everyday.

Anthony Harris is not an employee of 3M, the maker of Post-It Notes, he just finds them remarkably handy.