Racial division in a “cultural institution”

Since the 1954 Board of Education vs. Brown decision to ensure equal educational opportunities, America still has not reached a consensus on the standard of fair treatment for its non-white students, within its educational system. Instead of warranting that every child is taught equally and is given the best education possible, many educators have fallen into the subconscious rhythm of determining that white students are more qualified to “learn” than their African-American peers. This spawns from the belief that African-American children are naturally behind their white peers in the race for acquiring education. Unfortunately, this mimics the usurped era of seating African-Americans in the back of a bus and denying their presence in white public facilities, which appears to be reflected in schools today.

An African-American undergraduate, attending Cornell University, expresses his distaste for the lack of attention that the school pays toward African-American students and their accomplishments, as opposed to the “privileged” White students who are welcomed into the wealthy, White male-dominated institution. 

Notably, Cornell University was the only Ivy League university to accept women and people of color in the 1800s, during a demanding period of service after the Emancipation Proclamation. However, the issue today spans beyond the university’s historical admittance of Blacks and women. African-American students today are expected to assimilate into the school’s expansive White community, but “the large number of White students make racial divisions on campus obvious,” as a female Asian-American student explains.  She continues, “the campus as a whole is very White, and that doesn’t mean in terms of demographic or number of students, but just the way it’s structured, the way it’s set up.”

Nevertheless, African-American students who feel imminent bias from the educational system deem that “cultural traditions” should not be a valid excuse for accepting one’s ignorance.

More so, a diverse student body has previously discussed that racial dynamics and White privilege should be examined by the White students themselves or at best administered as a mandatory proponent of college education. However, faculty members were unanimous in denying in the students’ proposal without further comments. This decision angers the students who recognize the racial bias taking place campus and want this type of climate changed.   

A graduate student of color is livid with the ongoing dearth of respect in her university department of scholars and people who are professionally qualified to impart wisdom.   

“I have an advisor that doesn’t understand why nigger’s a bad word,” says the graduate student. “I have a department chair who doesn’t see a problem with their graduation rate for their minority students.”

Yet, the level of unconscious or conscious bias that exists within campus seems to involve more than a person’s race and social background. A White female undergraduate student counters the initial belief that African-Americans are not given more deliberation in the argument.  

“I feel as though, being a White, straight American-born citizen, I can only contribute as a female, not as a whole, multifaceted person. I sometimes feel that the opinions of minorities are taken into consideration more than those of whatever the majority or plurality is, for all aspects of diversity.”

Documented are these Cornell University students’ multiple perspectives of the campus climate, but the differences in opinion and attitude leave the issue of racial equality at a stand still.

An interesting lead in a case study confronting White educational privilege in the classroom, declares that students cannot determine the “logic and mechanisms perpetuating racial inequalities” due to the selective process of an educational system.

The U.S. educational system has striven to hold up its values throughout history by establishing equitable laws, such as Affirmative Action and the No Child Left Behind campaign. However, these surface regulations only graze the obvious expectations of what should be, instead of present circumstance. The question is: What are we hiding from, and how do we rise above it?

Source: Hurtado, S., Gasiewski, J., & Alvarez, C. L. (2014). The Climate for Diversity at Cornell University: Student Experiences.