Howard University students protest housing conditions with on-campus tent city

Protesters say they would rather sleep outside than live in the college dorms.

Dozens of Howard University students are sleeping outdoors in a tent encampment on campus grounds to protest what they describe as "poor" and "unlivable" conditions in the college dormitories.

Students told ABC News that portions of the university living quarters have mold and insect and rodent infestations, as well as leaky ceilings and flooding -- all of which they say put their health at risk.

Lamiya Murray, an 18-year-old freshman currently living in one of the tents, believes the mold that she said she spotted in her dorm room was responsible for a respiratory infection she battled earlier this year.

"I'm not going to say that I expect a lot more, I expect the bare minimum. I expect decent housing," Murray told ABC News. "I expect to be in a space where I will feel safe and secure, but the dorms became a health hazard. I was waking up every morning with a cough that I didn't go to sleep with the night before, and struggling to breathe at night."