International harassment remains unreported

Ora Nelson Despite some problems last year with international harassment, incidents of international students being harassed seem to be on the decline. In the spring of 2018, the Tropolitan reported several instances of harassment toward international students at Troy University. After two students posted on Facebook telling a story of seeing an international student harassed, other students began coming forward with similar stories. Several of the incidents involved males in trucks throwing soda onto people as they drove by or screaming profanity at international students. Kelly Suero, an assistant professor of Spanish who previously commented for the original article, refers any students who come to her to the counseling services offered by the university, whether the student is international or domestic. “They (the Student Counseling Center) give students the one-on-one individualized attention that (the students)need,” Suero said. “If we’re talking about things that happen illegally, you’d want to talk to the police as well and get them involved.” Suero said no new incidents of the behavior have been reported. “Just because they haven’t (told me), doesn’t mean (harassment) isn’t happening, but hopefully that’s a sign that things are better,” Suero said. Savannah Cousins, a senior human services major from Ramstein, Germany, isn’t sure how much the harassment situation has improved. “I’ve still heard of several incidents,” Cousins said. “However, I do think the spirit of Troy welcomes internationals, and most of the domestic students are very welcoming. “There’s many organizations who want to get involved this year with ISCO, which is a big development. I see steps in the right direction.” ISCO is the International Student Cultural Organization. If a student experiences or witnesses an act of harassment, they should contact the University Police Department at (334) 670-3215 and make an appointment with the Student Counseling Center at (334) 670-3700, if needed.