There comes a time during some protests when it becomes evident that the protesters lack a focus and simply grab and clutch for attention. That point came for the Black Caucus this past week.

It might have been the Caucus's insistence that Thon is a racist event, or it might have been President Darryl Watson's statement that an hour-long meeting with a school official was just "posturing," but it's becoming evident that the Caucus's energies are being misspent.

The Caucus has stated the planned senior gift is insensitive because it groups Martin Luther King Jr. with Thon and Penn State athletics, both of which, it claims, have racist histories. By that heavy-handed logic, the Caucus should be boycotting Penn State as a whole, because most, if not all, universities in the country have had some element of racism in them at some point in time.

I'll grant that the Caucus has a fairly valid point about Martin Luther King Jr. being grouped with Thon and Penn State athletics. These things shouldn't be grouped together, mainly because it seems a bit strange to immortalize arguably the most important man in the last 100 years with student philanthropy and a celebration of sports. King deserves his own monument somewhere else on campus, and so in that sense, the Caucus has managed to hit their mark.

Disappointingly, however, I feel that this valid point being raised is more the result of the Caucus throwing a pile of complaints at the wall to see which ones stick. The Caucus says it seeks to create a more tolerant and diverse environment on campus, but it seems that its only accomplishment so far is perplexing the university officials who try to help the group with vague, blanket statements and an alarming lack of specific complaints.

One of the biggest head scratchers among the Caucus's requests is the reinstitution of the Martin Luther King Jr. living option, a program that was discontinued because of lack of interest. It would seem, given the previous statement, that the Black Caucus isn't necessarily doing a great job listening to the complaints of the students it is supposed to represent.

The Black Caucus could be a great organization with a strong voice on campus if it simply spent the time to have dialogue with some of the groups it so eagerly criticizes.

The overall chairman of the senior class gift committee said that the Caucus never spoke with him about their concerns with the gift and instead went right into the president's office. That isn't the way to go about solving problems you have with other people. Neither is repeatedly dismissing attempts by others to reach out by making increasingly vague statements expressing your disapproval with everything under the sun.

The Caucus needs to present itself with a strong, clear, thoughtful voice on the topics that concern its members. Generalized statements of unhappiness with the way things are won't cut it anymore. Simply getting in the paper without saying anything of substance is unacceptable. I don't doubt that the Black Caucus is filled with thoughtful, intelligent people who could truly be difference-makers. All I see right now is a group of misguided people spending their energy in ways that are anything but constructive.

Eventually, school administrators are going to get fed up with the Black Caucus's repeated accusations of apathy and indifference to their concerns. There's only so much a group of people can tolerate when they are repeatedly accused of being insensitive despite what appear to be nothing but the best efforts on their part to have a dialogue with their accusers. If the Black Caucus wants to be seen as an organization with legitimate complaints, it needs to grab the olive branch that the university is trying to extend and open channels of communication that actually accomplish something.

It would also be constructive for the Caucus to stop making blanket statements or risk losing the ear of the student body. The battle for public opinion is not going in its favor right now, and a few legitimate statements that don't reek of sensationalist nonsense (again, I'm referring to the "Thon is racist" quote) would go a long way toward legitimizing them in the eyes of the student body.

It's time for the Black Caucus to step up to the plate and end their pointless posturing. You want to see change, you say? Then start talking, stop accusing, and maybe even listen to what other people have to say. Want to be taken seriously? Stop attacking every organization in sight.

The Caucus would do well to remember that, while freedom of speech is perhaps the most important right we have as citizens of this country, it loses its luster when the speaker is talking simply to hear the sound of his or her own voice.