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Everything that I am is because I am from Baltimore, Maryland. I am from a place where people that look like me are usually disadvantaged by racism, poor education, and economic deprivations. As a result, there is also high crime, drugs, and incarceration. For years, I watched people including family members struggle with these ills, which plagued our community, fighting to overcome legal trouble, financial trouble, and a lack of leadership and guidance. I can never forget the look of helplessness in my mother’s eyes as we went from one family crisis to the next. I was determined to learn from their experiences and avoid their pitfalls. I decided to put myself in a position to help, not only my family, but also the many good families like mine. …show more content…
Growing up I would always say that I was White and one day I was expose to the movie “ Imitation of Life” to get a better understanding of how proud I should be of being African American. In my eyes I thought that being White was one of the best things on earth. I was brought up around White people; but it was not until I entered into Clark Atlanta University that I realized that being Black is Beautiful. I attended The Seton Keough High School, which is an all girls’ private Catholic school in Baltimore City. Entering into high school I told myself that I would not allow the people I am around to change who I am. There were days where I would question if Seton Keough was the place for me, realizing that I am who I am regardless of the color of my skin and the color of their skin. Prior to attending Clark Atlanta University I was in a state of mind that prevented me from recognizing the injustice of my current situation, which I would consider a false consciousness agenda. Entering into Clark Atlanta University I was in a complete culture shock. After awhile I was able to get use to being around more people like more and myself happier with myself and culture. It was said to me all throughout my college career how important it is to be a Black male or female in the world that we live in today. I personally believe that race plays a major role in our daily lives. Attending a school where there are not many people who look like you around, can be hard at times. You have already been singled out because of the color of your
This power keeps the behavior of the oppressed well within the set guidelines of the oppressor (Freire, 2000, pg. 47). Critical Race Theory outlines this system of oppression as it relates to white and non-white races. By using the critical race theory coupled with the system of oppression described by Freire (2000), I propose that within the system of oppression, the oppressor must keep its own members in line with the prescribed guidelines by reinforcing the social norms from birth. Freire (2000) suggest that the interest of the oppressors lie in “changing the consciousness of the oppressed not the system” (pg.34). Identifying as white, therefore, starts at birth when members of the white class work to reinforce social norms that began with our founding fathers at Plymouth Rock. This long history of white privilege was taught to me and I continue to teach it to my children. As an educator of white affluent high school students, I believe we provide college and career counseling based on this white privilege system of oppression as well. Here, I journey even closer to unraveling the myth of white privilege as I encounter the intersection of an affluent white student choosing a career after high
Clearly, HBCUs provide several benefits to African-American students. Not only have they helped to combat the cycle of discrimination that minority students experienced before the civil rights initiatives of the 1960s, but they strive to provide a warm, supportive and inclusive academic environment that addresses African-American college students as a whole person. Additionally, HBCUs are increasing their efforts to ensure that higher education is accessible, affordable and achievable for individuals with unique socioeconomic challenges. Despite obstacles, historically Black institutions will continue to play a vital and significant role in the fabric of higher education.
As a result of HBCU’s being predominantly black, many people refer to HBCU’s as a waste of time. Many people say that they do not prepare you for the real world. They argue that HBCU’s are not preparing you to face what life will throw at you. For Example, if you were the minority or if you were facing something you’ve never experienced. I can completely understand why they would believe that. The majority of students are African American but HBCU’s are very open to accepting anyone no matter what their race or ethnicity. Every student that attends a HBCU leaves with confidence, knowledge, and power to overcom...
I wanted to wear brand clothes/shoes they did, I wanted to do my hair like them, and make good grades like them. I wanted to fit in. My cultural identify took a back seat. But it was not long before I felt black and white did not mix. I must have heard too many comments asking to speak Haitian or I do not look Haitian, but more than that, I am black, so I always had to answer question about my hair or why my nose is big, and that I talked white. This feeling carried on to high school because the questions never went away and the distance between me and them grew larger. There was not much action my family could take for those moments in my life, but shared their encounters or conversations to show me I was not alone in dealing with people of other background. I surrounded myself with less white people and more people of color and today, not much has
This cognizance really ensued when I first started work as an educational therapist in a residential placement for severely emotionally disturbed teenage girls. Being in such a arbitrary position of power was difficult enough with people who have issues with control and lack of respect from elders but I also happened to be the only male ever in this position at the facility and a "white guy" to boot. Ninety percent of my clients happened to be Latina or African American. This ethnic flash point did not initially bother me because of my lack of awareness of its existence and my naive determination that it was not important for my therapeutic and educational goals. However, of course I had not really considered at that time what being 'white' really entails in this society. Consideration of one's identity is obviously key to successful educational and therapeutic interventions but it took the actual experience of being what I call "white-washed" to make me realize that skin color may actually have something important to do with one's perceived identity.
Attending a predominantly white school, white people were very interested, or rather over interested, in the so-called black culture. Being in a space that had minority black people, oppression was felt on the highest level. Anything that may have remotely involved the black skin, was downplayed and undermined, and more cases than one, my voice was silenced. From this experience, I started realising that wherever I may go, the female black body was not correctly or remotely represented positively in the media and in general society. For many years, as a regular television watcher, I began to realise that the media and entertainment industry did not put black women in power or inspiration, but women who are needy, sexual objects or women who play second best to men. In my educational systems, I have not been exposed to black lectures or teachers enough, and I realised that we were not being correctly and rightfully represented. As a black body, I am aware that I occupy space in a white environment, and that much of what I do is under the scope of white supremacy. Much of the experiences I have at my university are very much related to my racial profiling, and my level of intelligence is marked according to how I look eternally. Daily, I am constantly reminded that I am black as if it is something to be ashamed of social elite environment. In the article written by Dill and Zambara,
Over the years there has been a significant decrease in the percentage of African American male success in higher education. Not only does this effect society as a whole, but more importantly this effects the African- American community as well. The high percentage of uneducated African- American males will result in increased crime rate, shortened life span and overall hard life. However this epidemic can be stopped by looking at the contributing factors of why there is a decrease in African-American male success in higher education and how to change it. Throughout the paper I will be addressing the issues as to why there are not more black men in higher education, by looking at the contributing factors such as environmental stressors, student’s perceptions, racial identity issues, academic and social integration, family upbringing and the media. The attrition rate of African- American male students could be changed and decreased drastically. Increasing our understanding of these differences would enable us to better meet the needs of young black men.
As an African American male, I experienced inequality, and judgment from individuals that have no idea what kind of person I truly am. As a youth, I received a lackluster education, which has resulted in me underachieving in a number of my college classes. It has come to my attention that other colored students are currently experiencing and receiving the same inadequate learning environment and educatio...
Prior to beginning my readings on white racial identity, I did not pay much attention to my white race. If someone had asked me to describe my appearance I would have said short blond hair, blue eyes, average stature, etc. One of the last things I would have noted was the color of my skin. Growing up in overwhelmingly white communities, I never thought to use the color of my skin to differentiate myself from others. Over the course of this dialogue I have learned that my white racial identity is one of the most defining aspects of my appearance in this society. There is a certain level of privilege that I am afforded based solely on the color of my skin. According to Peggy McIntosh, “White privilege is like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, assurances, tools, maps, guides, codebooks, passports, visas, clothes, compass, emergency gear, and blank checks” (71). All these objects listed by McIntosh are things I have access to and certainly take for granted. Due to a history of non-white racial oppression, which transformed into decades of racial discrimination that still lingers today, the white race has dominated our society in terms of resources and prosperity. The ideas of wealth, higher-level education and ambition to succeed are all traits commonly linked to people of the white race that collectively define privilege. The aspect of privilege can also produce disadvantages for people of the white race as well. In the book Promoting Diversity and Justice, the author D. Goodman notes that people of advantage groups develop a sense of superiority, which will sometimes lead them to wonder if, “their achievements were based on privilege or merit” (107). Along with a diminished sense of accomplishment, the cost ...
Introduction This paper examines the struggle African American students are more likely to face at a predominantly white institution (PWIs) than at a historically black college or university (HBCUs). Each author has his or her own take on this hypothesis; most of the author’s studies suggest that African American students have a hard time adjusting to an environment at a PWI (Littleton 2003). However, African American students at HBCUs tend to be at ease with their learning environment. Though many of the author’s agree with one another, there are other authors whose studies come to the conclusion that race is not a factor in college education anymore. That being the case, on average, the African American population is approximately four percent at PWIs (Littleton 2003).
This essay will be arguing that colleges and universities should promote more efforts to diversify and create equal representation of all students. Attending higher education institution for minorities has been an uneasy struggle and one that few minorities accomplish. The dilemma of African American enrollment for example, in a college lecture hall at Texas A&M containing 250 seats, only a maximum 4 out of 250 seats will contain African American students. Unfortunately, many institutions are similar to Texas A&M University, they have an underrepresentation of minorities their on campus in relationship to white students. The lack of diversity keeps stigmas associated with racism relevant and disregards the demographic representation of minorities in America disabling students from identifying with different cultures. There’s evidence from scholars such as Elizabeth Smith and Emilia Plonska, students and instructors that validate in order to promote unity and knowledge of all cultures institutions must promote integration of minorities and increase attendance. Many minorities fail to complete their journeys in higher education which results in unequal representation, segregated environments and unprivileged minorities receiving the benefits of a quality post-secondary education offered at prestige Universities like Texas A&M and UCLA
As cliché as it sounds, it is true that many African American students come from very harsh and poverty stricken environments. They tend to go to under resourced schools as well that do not provide the proper knowledge for them to further their education. And even worse, these schools tend to be segregated since they are usually in the harsher parts of a neighborhood. Sadly, it’s the segregated schools are one of the main reasons why black students decide not to go on to pursue a higher education. According to "The Way Out of the Black Poverty Cycle", a black student that attends an integrated suburban school is six times more likely to graduate compared to a segregated under resourced school. An African Americans family structure and the opinions of family members affects if their decision to further their education as well. Many African American children grow up un...
An important psychological shift advocated by the Black Conscious Movement was the redefinition of blackness. No longer would Africans accept the negative label of ‘non-white’, they refused to be regarded as non-persons but demanded to be called positively as black. This definition of ‘black’ was not race or class exclusive rather it sought to incorporate all people who were discriminated against and denied access to white privileges under the oppressive apartheid regime. The definition of blackness is actually somewhat complex, the path to understanding it leads to certain directions. First off, that being black was a mental attitude, not just a matter of skin pigmentation. Secondly, by merely acknowledging that one is black already sets oneself along the road of emancipation.
I was sitting, waiting impatiently for Adam. All of a sudden, this red Toyota Tacoma flew into my driveway, screech. “Hey sweetie! Are you ready to go and eat?” he screamed out of his fire red truck. In the mean time, I was sitting there, glaring out the window, talking to myself like a harebrained would do, asking the stupidest questions, “Is he going to like my disturbed family? What is he going to think of my annoying redneck relatives? I hope he likes fish. Am I too dressed up for dinner?”
I never really thought about where my life was going. I always believed life took me where I wanted to go, I never thought that I was the one who took myself were I wanted to go. Once I entered high school I changed the way I thought. This is why I chose to go to college. I believe that college will give me the keys to unlock the doors of life. This way I can choose for myself where I go instead of someone choosing for me.