Racism on College Campuses

    The practice of ethnic separation and segregation is common on every college and university campus. Since this practice has happened through history, it is remarkable that this has only been recognized recently as a true problem (Jacobs, 2). Segregation has hampered America as long as it has existed. Ethnicity and segregation was nearly the cause of this country splitting apart during the Civil War. Since then reformation and hard work has attempted to bring unity to this country. Though today, college students have regressed, university pupils are "standing by" their own and are not branching out to those who are unlike them in ethnicity. People in general, but more specifically college students

Solórzano and Yosso (2001) asserted that the aforementioned concepts act as a “camouflage for the self-interest, power and privilege of dominate groups in U.S. society” (p. 473). This means that even though over sixty years have passed since the Civil Rights Movement and over one hundred years since the Emancipation Proclamation, there are still forms of racism and oppression that are evident in higher education that require further research through the lens of critical race theory.

Racial diversity is something that is often discussed on college campuses. As a student who self-identifies as a minority in more ways than one I often feel like I have a pretty good understanding of the subject of racism and race. However, often times when these issue are discussed I learn something new; this was the case when reading the articles this week. This week’s articles examined the issue of race from different perspectives. This allowed me to re-examine the issue in a fuller manner; it also allowed me to question some of my own notions that I hadn’t really challenged before.

Meet Rachel, a sophomore studying at Howard University who is also mixed with both black and white. Rachel transferred to the Historically Black University from a Predominantly White Institution because she felt as though she was not “white enough” and Howard would better suit her. Unfortunately upon her arrival, Rachel could not help but feel as though she was not “black enough” to attend Howard University. Rachel’s feeling of not belonging are not isolated, they are shared by millions of biracial Americans who, at one time or another, felt as though they did not belong to either culture. These feelings have been brought on, over time, by the way, America, although believed to be a “melting pot” of cultures, often wants people to categorize themselves as one ethnicity and the pressure placed on Americans to solely identify with one race divides the country more than anything else. The only way to rectify this problem is for Americans to stop separating themselves into racial categories and come together to be classified as simply American.

The intended audience for this article is people of Caucasian descent. “Yes, we all have unconscious biases, but white people 's biases support a racist system”(Blake, 4). In America, the Civil Rights movement was about freedom of people of color from white supremacy. While people of color are able to enjoy freedoms that they were not able to enjoy in previous centuries, there are still remnants of racial prejudices that exist. The author argues that while everyone stereotypes, racism continues to persist because of the stereotypes of prominent white persons.

Imagine being a student of low economic status that has always dreamed of going to a world renowned university but the stench of racism still looms at the well-known college. The racism displayed at this university is undeniable and very visible which in result scares away many diverse students. Colleges claim to be diverse but with the lack of minorities due to the recognizable racism issues and problems this proposes an important matter. Racism at The University of Mississippi can be solved by raising awareness of racial problems and also the increase of mandatory diversity classes.

Our racial ethnicity is influential in what we do in life, whether it would be with school, personal relations, or even job opportunities. There are many Americans today that hold racial prejudice against people of different color and different ethnicity, which as a result narrows many opportunities that minorities can actually have. In the essay “Race in America: “We Would Like To Believe We Are Over The Problem” Maryann Cusimano Love an associate professor of international relations in the Politics Department at Catholic University, addresses “To “get over” racial problems” (Love 387) we need to acknowledge them as well as the history of those racial problems in order to move forward as a multicultural society. Love reveals a study conducted by The University of Connecticut which shows “19 percent of the 14,000 college

Racism has been a terrible problem in American society for hundreds of years. Racism issues are not limited to one specific race, but include all races. It is the responsibility of the people of this nation to address racism and learn to accept and embrace each other for our differences, and allow this great nation to become even more united for our sake and the sake of future generations. To eliminate racism it is imperative to know first, where racism started and how it has developed, why it continues to be present in our nation today, and what we must do as a people to overcome this major problem.

Colleges are vastly known to have people who bring in their ideas and cultures to campuses. However, there are sometimes when people from two different cultures conflict with each other and it causes problems for not only a college campus but for a society as well. Take the racial conflict between African American and Caucasian Americans, their feud has been going on in America for the past two decades. In 1992, Rodney King was beaten by L.A. police which started the “L.A. Riots” (Biography.com, 2015). During 2012, Trayvon Martin was killed by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman (Biography.com, 2016). In August 2014, unarmed teenager, Michael Brown, was shot and killed by police officer Darren Wilson (Buchanan, 2014). These events have two significant things in common. The three victims were killed by white individuals and they were killed on the basis of discrimination and mainly direct racism.

Minikel-Lacocque, J. (2012). Racism, College, and the Power of Words Racial Microaggressions Reconsidered. American Educational Research Journal, June 2013, Vol. 50, No. 3, pp. 432–465

No idea in America has been as lasting as race. Unlike the 19th century notion that anyone could move out west and become rich by mining gold, the notion of race persists and continues to deceive people into believing in its authenticity (Morgan 1982). Those in power in the United States, seem determined to stay in power. They continue to marginalize minorities and keep dark-skinned persons in a position

American society likes to believe that race relations in our country are no longer strained. We do not want to hear about the need for affirmative action or about the growing numbers of white supremacist groups. In order to appease our collective conscious, we put aside the disturbing fact that racism is alive and well in the great U.S.A. It hides in the workplace, it subtly shows its ugly face in the media, and it affects the education of minority students nationwide. In the following excerpts from an interview with a middle class African American male, the reader will find strong evidence that race plays a major role in determining the type and quality of education a student receives.

On a personal level, society needs a shift in its approach to race. Instead of creating divisions, Americans should try to understand their biases. Recently, initiatives with this goal have sprung up in universities. Soon after the Civil Rights Act, many universities in America implemented affirmative action initiatives, which sought to level the playing field between white and minority applicants, the latter traditionally having a disproportionately low acceptance rate. Doing so increased the minority population on campuses and brought the issue of discrimination to the forefront of national attention. By acknowledging historical patterns of discrimination and taking explicit action to reverse that trend, a peaceful method to decrease racial inequality emerged. However, white applicants have protested affirmative action, labeling it “reverse discrimination.” Yet this only emphasizes the faults in racial understanding – members of traditionally privileged groups recoil at the notion of elevating minorities, not realizing that their lower starting place necessitates a boost later. For unity, both groups must reach a mutual understanding about race’s role in modern society.

Due to strong racial tensions, colleges believe admitting individuals in accordance to race is a positive liberal act, however affirmative action is evolving into quite a social strain. Colleges that endorse affirmative action are alleviating racial pressures based on college demographics but creating repercussions that are impacting all races and ages. If we continue burying the issues with affirmative action, we will not only be lessening the meaning of education but creating isolation between cultures.

Some opponents argue that multiculturalism is actually racism in disguise. In their opinion, the meaning of multiculturalism is that “an individual’s identity and personal worth are determined by ethnic/racial membership—not by his own choices and actions” (Rand). This leads to the impression that a person’s identity is determined by skin color, and therefore people separate into ethnic groups. Those in opposition to multiculturalism believe that college students have become racial separatists, that they form “self-segregated” dormitories and choose friends based on ethnicity.