Polite Terms That Excuse Blatant Unfairness Against People Of Color On Campus
Stereotypes of minority students as “not belonging” to the larger higher education collective devalues their importance as part of the academic community and excludes them from advanced level courses. The lack of self-esteem that goes hand in hand with a perceived “second class citizen” status translates to lower grades, lack of discipline and academic apathy.
For many people the recent Kavanaugh hearings put a spotlight on Yale for its elite academic reputation on the one hand and the perception that it was representative of upper-class privilege and elitism on the other. Beyond the destructive dialogue and tribalism that marked this recent embarrassing chapter in governmental oversight is the big picture of whether microaggression and bias against students without a deep white pedigree exists — not just on the campus of Yale, but across all of higher education.
The Video And The Firestorm
Why single out Yale to begin this discussion? We live in a YouTube society where sensational and controversial viral videos drive the news. One such video created a firestorm when as guest columnist Jacob Hutt described for Yale Daily News (Institutional Racism) “With the measured tone of a salesperson who stands their ground while a tantrum-throwing customer complains, Sarah Braasch looked Lolade Siyonbola straight in the eye and stated, ‘I have every right to call the police. You cannot sleep in that room.’ To thousands of people — particularly students of color who have fervently repeated stories about being profiled as criminal because of their race — it became clear that Braasch had called the police on Siyonbola for one reason: She was black and unfamiliar, and, particularly in a city like New Haven where we are constantly told that the local population is criminally inclined, she was, therefore, seen as a threat.”
In response to the incident, University President Peter Salovey released a statement that read in part, “Universities are not utopias, and people of color experience racism on our campus as they do elsewhere in our country. This fact angers and disappoints me. Each of us has the power to fight against prejudice and fear. I hope you will join me in doing so.”
However, for some, the incident represented a trend, as well as a pattern of behavior, for Braasch and Yale. According to a report in Yale Daily News, another black graduate student Jean-Louis Reneson had been reported to the police by this same student. Staff writer Britton O’Daly reported that Reneson and Siyonbola submitted a complaint about a separate incident to Associate Dean for Graduate Student Development and Diversity Michelle Nearon.
According to O’Daly, “a copy of the complaint Reneson provided to the News, the incident began when Siyonbola invited several colleagues, including Reneson, to a meeting in a common room. Reneson was physically blocked by Braasch from entering the room after he asked her for directions, the complaint read. Reneson told the News that Braasch did not appear to believe that he was a Yale student and instead accused him of being an intruder.”
Reneson told Yale Daily News, “Feeling ignored, I went down to the base of the twelfth floor and eleventh floor and turned my back, but she continued to verbally assault me from the twelfth floor claiming that I ‘didn’t belong here’ and I was making her ‘uncomfortable.’”
As a result, four police officers showed up to question what was deemed a “suspicious character” on the twelfth floor. The complaint by Reneson and Siyonbola concluded that summoning the police on Reneson and other “acts of microaggression and psychological violence” at Yale create an unsafe atmosphere for minority students.
Breaking Down Microaggression
The term “microaggression” used in the complaint is not surprising. It has become the buzzword for a pervasive problem on campuses that have become increasingly diverse. Some believe that the term, itself, minimizes the actions that fall under this category. Micro — something small, almost unnoticeable is minimized when paired with the word “aggression.” Or take the term, “unconscious bias.” Qualifying the ugly and hurtful word, “bias” with the word “unconscious” makes the act benign and defensible. But these actions are anything but benign and defensible.
A paper published by www.bordercrossers.org compiled from information an NAACP report entitled, “Barriers Rooted in Race and Gender Bias Harm Educational Outcomes and Must Be Addressed,” data from the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity and Psychology Today’s “Racial Microaggression in Everyday Life,” defines microaggression and unconscious bias and its serious effects on all levels of education.
According to Border Crossers, “Unconscious Bias: Also known as implicit bias, unconscious bias refers to our attitudes, perceptions and stereotypes that influence our understanding, actions, and behavior when interacting with various identities. These preferences, which can be for or against groups, are developed through an exposure to stereotypes and misinformation informed by our upbringing and life experiences. Residing deep in the subconscious, these biases are different from known biases that individuals may choose to conceal for the purposes of social and/or political correctness.”
Border Crossers describes Racial Microaggressions as “Subtle, verbal and nonverbal, racial insults, indignities and denigrating messages, often automatically and unconsciously, directed toward an individual(s) due to their racially marginalized identities. Usually committed by well-intentioned people who are unaware of the hidden messages committed, the impact of their statements and the unintentional connection to the institutional, interpersonal and internalized manifestations of racism.”
Microaggressions And Education
Whether overt or subtle in nature, microaggressions make for a hostile or ineffective learning environment, encourage the development of certain medical problems like depression and anxiety, as well as cloud logic, and interfere with problem solving skills. Stereotypes of minority students as “not belonging” to the larger higher education collective devalues their importance as part of the academic community and excludes them from advanced level courses. The lack of self-esteem that goes hand in hand with a perceived “second class citizen” status translates to lower grades, lack of discipline and academic apathy. As Border Crossers concludes, “Microaggressions may also hinder conversations and might work to create a false sense of superiority for the individual making the comments, especially within a classroom setting.”
Unfortunately, microaggression follows affected students as they continue their training. A prime example of this phenomena can be found with minority medical school students. According to a Yale-led study reported by Ziba Kashef by Yale News, minority medical school students are less likely to be selected for membership in a prestigious medical honor society, Alpha Omega Alpha (AΩA), than white medical school students. The disparity suggests bias in the AΩA membership selection process, which could negatively affect opportunities for minority medical school students, noted the researchers.
The study was published in JAMA Internal Medicine. Medical students are eligible for AΩA membership if they rank in the top quartile of their class and are selected by a committee at their institution. Society membership is important because members are more likely to get into the residency program of their choice, and more likely to attain the rank of full professor, dean or department chair than nonmembers, the researchers said. Yale is one of the few medical schools in the United States that does not offer AΩA membership. The findings suggest potential bias in the AΩA membership selection process, which could limit opportunities for minority medical students. For example, non-members may be automatically screened out by competitive residency programs that use membership as a filter.
In another Yale study, also reported by Ziba Kashef for Yale News, researchers conducted a study exploring the role of race and ethnicity in minority resident training experiences.
“The research team, led by Dr. Aba Osseo-Asare, conducted qualitative interviews with more than two dozen minority residents during a conference in 2017. The participants represented a range of races and ethnicities, as well as medical specialties and geographic locations. They were asked about their general experiences as residents, specific incidents involving race and discrimination, and the diversity climate at their institutions, among other questions.
Three major themes emerged from the interviews:
1. Minority residents described daily experience of bias and microaggressions.
2. They also detailed being asked to serve as race/ethnicity “ambassadors” to help resolve issues of diversity at their institutions.
3. The residents reported experiencing a dichotomy between their professional and personal identities.
Instances of bias were often subtle or covert, the researchers observed.
To address this complex problem, the research team pointed to a recently established requirement that all residency programs promote recruitment and retention of a diverse workforce. Lead author Osseo-Asare suggested that programs take more ownership for diversity and inclusion in ways that do not place undue burden on minority residents alone — burdens that could limit educational opportunities and contribute to burnout among minority residents.”
Conclusion
As reported in AAC&U News, a University of Illinois Racial Microaggressions Research Project report also concluded that microaggressions adversely affected student mental health, academic performance, and graduation or retention rates. Some of the study’s recommendations included increasing diversity programs, and implementing training and workshops for all employees that provide services to students. According to the AAC&U News, “The report also recommended that ‘all students (complete) a General Education requirement about race, white privilege, and inequality in the United States.’ In its concluding remarks, the report added, ‘Valuing diversity is more than numbers, it is how we interact with and treat each other. Training for citizenship in a diverse society should be part of the general education requirements.’”
Larry Dietz, president of Illinois State University, addressed this issue on Facebook stating, “We must strive to achieve diversity and celebrate it as an important aspect of the community of Illinois State University. In order to continue to be a community and to meet the expectations of our value of diversity, we must listen to each other; discuss our issues with each other; respect our differences and learn from them; celebrate our achievements; and care about each other. I have faith in our potential to do all of these things. I have faith in our democracy and in our ability to persevere and achieve.” •