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Diversity on college campuses essay
Introduction to diversity in college
Diversity on college campus essay
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Growing up in the rural town of Browns Mills, being a Black girl was like a dime a dozen; it held no signifying factors for me. Whether you were White, Black, Spanish, or any other group, the people I grew up with accepted everyone despite it. Such acceptance while enjoyable, did not fortify me for the later struggles I would confront after leaving the socially idyllic neighborhood. Since my town was accepting of everyone there was never a need to learn about or claim aspects of my diversity. My biggest personal claim to diversity in my childhood was the being great (many times over) granddaughter of to a Seminole Chief. Even this story, passed down through my family, was hard to prove. I had a disinterest in carrying over my families oral histories instead finding pride in being like everyone else. This fact began to change when I attend college for both the better and worse. Despite my racially diverse upbringing, I found myself in a racial enclave at Rutgers University, a hard existence for someone who believed their heritage held no cultural significance. I did not understand the personal and social implications of only having friends who were Black. This isolated me from those of other races but brought a kinship I previously had not experienced. I am a Black woman from America; a fact initially despised, I learned to embrace it my later school years. Being Black but culturally American comes with its own values and struggles outside of those from the larger group of descendants from the African Diaspora. I came to understand, while growing up without defined racial and cultural lines it made me more susceptible to the negative aspects of defining yourself. It left me confused, searching, and needing that THING to demarcate ... ... middle of paper ... ... categorized myself based solely on my skin color. Through my own cultural education I came to understand that my diversity is summarized in my uniqueness. I was able to answer those questions my college experienced presented to me. While growing up, labeling myself racially and cultural was unimportant because it offered no extra gains socially. Since I was thrust from my ignorance I strove to confidently say what defines me. It is through this purist that I bring a unique perspective to the legal profession. I am a middle child of an African-American military family who to slavery in the South and Native American leadership. I am the makeup of my experiences and those of my ancestors’ struggles and trumps. I am a woman who holds her own in a male dominated world. All of these amongst many others outline who I am and what I do. I am diversity, I am my Blackness.
It is commonly thought that one has to struggle in order to be black. Black people tend to have a stronger sense of group identification than any other racial group in the United States. The question is whether or not this is helpful or detrimental to the black population. In “Promoting Black (Social) Identity” Laura Papish criticizes Tommie Shelby’s We Who Are Dark. Shelby argues that the black population’s sense of group identity is vital to furthering their collective political agenda. Shelby believes that best way to make sure that their political ideologies are cohesive is for black individuals to have a “thick conception of black identity” (Papish 2).” Having a thick sense of black identity calls for “ African Americans think of themselves as and act as a ‘nation’ constituted not by physical borders, but by a shared ethnic, cultural, or biological trait that imbues the community with a ‘general will’ and this “ will” typically includes political motives (Papish 2). Papish argues that it not part of the duty of a black person to have any sense of loyalty or solidarity with other African-Americans and that not doing so does not make them any less black than those that choose to have a thick sense of black identity. Those who don’t grow up with a strong black group identity in their lives are just as black and go through some of the same struggles that other black people do. In the video “Black Like Who?” Debbie Reynolds did not have a strong sense of blackness because she was raised in a white neighbor. The other ladies in the short film talk about how they thought that she had a “ real problem with [her] ethnicity like [she] had a problem with the fact that [she] born African-American (Reynolds). This along with the documentary on Lacey Schwartz show that a person’s sense of blackness is very much a product of what others around them define blackness as. However, it is not clear
People of different ethnic backgrounds are influenced by both cultural and societal normalities to want to naturally return to their own ethnic groups. In Beverly Daniel Tatum’s book “Why Are All Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?” Tatum tries to explain why in even racially diverse schools, people of the same race tend to gravitate toward one another causing racial separation. Tatum claims that people of the same race, particularly black kids, are likely to turn toward people who understand their shared perspective. Although Tatum effectively uses a conversational tone and emotionally charged words, her overuse of biased interviews and experiences forces the reader to question the validity of her portrayal of race relations.
I am an African, black female who grew up in a predominantly white environment around my living space, and attended a predominantly white private school. In relation to class, I have been fortunate and privileged enough to be placed in a living environment that allowed me to receive the best education,
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.
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...
In conclusion growing up with an ethnic background was pretty hard; I did not get ridiculed for looking different or doing things differently. There was when I had to assimilate to be accepted in a new town because I did not want to be known as a nerd if I played with the Asian kids instead when I was at school I adapted and changed my beliefs and played with the White kids to feel accepted. But, the hardest part was not in the social atmosphere it comes when it came to my parents. My parents put up these social barriers to not allow me to expand out of my own race. Growing up I broke out of their chain and started to explore different friends and started to date people of other races.
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 ...
Race has been a controversial issue throughout history and even more so today. The idea of race has contributed to the justifications of racial inequality and has led to the prejudice and discrimination of certain racial groups. Race and racism were constructed to disadvantage people of color and to maintain white power in America. Today, race has been the center of many political changes and actions that have affected people of color. The idea of race has played a role in how people from different racial groups interact amongst each other. Interactions within one’s own racial group are more common than interactions among other racial groups, at least in my own experiences. Therefore, because I have been positioned to surround myself with people from my own racial group since a very young age, I have internalized that being around my own racial group is a normal and natural occurrence.
One’s cultural identity consists of their race, gender, socioeconomic status, age, religion, and so on. Being aware of your own cultural identity is just as important as being aware of other’s. People’s cultural identity defines who they are, the privilege (or lack of privilege) they receive, and how society views them. It is important to understand that White individuals have more privileges than individuals of color. White individuals do not experience detriment and difficulties due specifically to their skin color and instead receive advantages. White privilege is defined as benefits that white individuals have that people of color do not (Kendall, 2012). The following walks through my personal cultural background, how it was shaped, defined, and developed, and limitations to my personal competencies.
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
Though each individual experiences life differently certain experiences link them together. Specifically, being a person of color while being a singular experience, is also a very universal when it comes down to the way in which minority groups are subject to the oppression of the white mainstream. The friction between being proud of one’s identity or choosing to ignore it and assimilate into society, is complex and is a fact that many people of color struggle with, because it is not easy to be proud of one’s identity when everything around them is telling them not to be, so in a sense these individuals see themselves in two ways, a minority proud of their identity, and then as an outsider in a white world where they feel as if they will never be accepted.
In the relevant course, CRD 2, I was made aware of a few different theories of social identity development, particularly pertaining to race. As I began to examine these theories, I sought out similarities, something that would catch my eye and make me think, “That applies to me.” Beverly Tatum’s ideas caught with me most easily, and I will elaborate on them shortly, but for the most part, I had to struggle to find one that seemed synonymous with who I am and how I see myself. The closest likenesses I could find were for the most part milder versions of the theory’s anecdotes, and I found it unnecessary to make myself conform to a theory exactly. While the theories are excellent material for reflection, and possibly even enlightenment, I assert that, considering the individuality of each person, it’s illogical to assume that every person can be categorized into a theory.
Loyd and Williams (2016) define ethnic-racial identity as a “multidimensional psychological construct that represents the aspect of a person's overall identity that is associated with race or ethnicity.” These facets of racial identity develop and consolidate when a person continuously explores and associates with a specific racial group (Loyd & Williams, 2016). The more positive people feel about membership of a specific group, the stronger their racial identity will be. Neville and Cross (2017) conceptualize Black racial identity through the emphasis of being cognizant and conscious of what it means to be Black mentally, politically and socially. Sellers and Colleagues (1998) define racial identity as the importance and specific meaning one attaches to their racial group. They consider both the historical and cultural background associated with African Americans when examining their group membership. They primarily focus on the status of one's racial identity as opposed to the process of the formation of it. Sellers and Colleagues (1998) define racial identity in African Americans as “the significance and qualitative meaning that individuals attribute to their membership within the Black community.” Our current study uses Sellers and Colleagues (1998) definition of racial identity. There are four main dimensions of the MMRI: Racial Salience, Racial Centrality, Racial Regard and Racial Ideology
It must be noted that for the purpose of avoiding redundancy, the author has chosen to use the terms African-American and black synonymously to reference the culture, which...
The oppression that African American individuals endured for years, is still being practice with racial discrimination and prejudice. One strength of identifying as African American is the increase of belongingness that gave me the ability to share and live amongst individuals with the same physical appearance and in some cases, the same obstacles. However, this was not always the case. Growing into an adult gave me the advantage to travel and meet other African Americans that I believed shared some of the same historical and ethnic background. In this time period I was introduced to what is called within-group differences, which is the differences among the members of a group (Organista, 2010). Wanting to be around individuals that I believed to have a common core with was one of my flaws, but while traveling with individuals that I thought was like me I experienced that I had nothing in common with some of my travel friends. One of my friends stated that we had nothing in common with each other, because of our different social economic status, education and employment. At first I was offended, however, after taking psychology of ethnic groups in the United States there was a sense of understanding that not all individuals that look alike, are alike. This assumption that all groups function