The Black History Month Facade http://www.dailycal.org/article/104560/the_black_history_month_facade
By Lajuanda Asemota Contributing Writer Friday, February 27, 2009 Once again it is that time of year, Black History Month. As a black womyn on this campus, February is close to my heart because it is a time to remember my childhood, gather with family and friends in celebration, and to talk about our history. In short, this month continually reminds me how much I love being black, from my history to my unconditional love for the community. But when I think about how we celebrate this month each year, I begin to think about how our history should be celebrated and respected all year long. So instead of typically quoting Martin Luther King, Jr. or Malcolm X-as if this campus had actually overcome all issues of racial inequality-I am going to do something more productive with my time and write to the average student at UC Berkeley about ways in which our campus perpetuates racism and what you can do to personally stop carrying it on. First, can someone please tell me how the campus randomly chose to post so many black people for the "Thanks to Berkeley" campaign? The black community on campus consists of some 800-900 undergraduate students of which about 300-500 are active leaders and participants. This is on a campus of more than 35,000 students. After all is said and done, it's hard not to notice that nearly half my personal friends got "randomly chosen" to be posted in a strategic campaign to garner more donations for UC Berkeley. When black people make up less than four percent of the campus and yet make up over 10-15 percent of the "Thanks to Berkeley" campaign signs, most people will agree it's not a coincidence. The "Thanks to Berkeley" campaign was a low blow by the campus administration to once more exploit students of color at UC Berkeley. People of color always seem to pop up in overrepresented numbers on the brochures geared towards prospective students and donors. There are many more examples of how UC Berkeley is struggling to support and represent students of color on campus. So let me give you some insight on what it may be like to be a black student at UC Berkeley. First: There is a huge UCPD harassment problem towards black students and other communities of color. We live with this, and as a community, have had many meetings with and without UCPD about this issue, and yet the "misunderstanding" persists. We have to say, "Um ... No, I did not just steal my own backpack from the rally we had about racial equality." The implication that all black people are thieves goes beyond UCPD relations and even into the dorms where black students are sometimes harassed and isolated. Also, there is the staff to deal with on campus, like at the Golden Bear Cafe, who earlier in the school year asked black students not to stand in front of the building because they were "deterring business." Never did they take into account that we were celebrating a weekly tradition called Black Wednesday, which is over 40 years old. Or, if you're still not convinced, how about the fact that you can take a poetry class on this campus that teaches you how to speak and write "Black English" as one of the facets of the curriculum. Not all black people speak the same way or have the same experience, and furthermore, the vernacular is not a foreign language to be taught and performed, but rather a result of the colonizers forcing black people to speak English. We all are not criminals, we all don't come from impoverished areas and we all don't write poetry in "Black English." These real experiences all point to one thing: the campus and oftentimes its students have reduced our existence to that of the "token Black." Token blacks are the black people seen on TV (and in real life) thrown in randomly to fulfill "politically correct" standards. Usually they only speak to say something funny, inappropriate or lewd, all stereotypes of black behavior. Token blacks are also used in cases where good publicity is needed. This standard produces a mirrored effect of how UC Berkeley treats us as black students in and out of the classroom. So, in honor of Black History Month I have come up with a few things you can do to reduce the perpetuation of stereotypes and further marginalization of black people on this campus. Do not take random photos of black people and post them up on brochures to depict unrealistic diversity. When you meet a black person walking down Upper Sproul Plaza or in your classes, please refrain from asking questions like, "I have to know ... What is it like growing up in the ghetto?" or "OMG. What sport do you play?" or my personal favorite, the classic switch up from a simple "How's it going?" to an overly exaggerated "What's good in the hood baby?!" All of these are purely unacceptable. Lastly, stop the crazy comments in class that seem more indicative of a privileged, white experience than a worldly one. This attempt to prove that "we live in a colorblind world ... and never noticed inequality" makes you look ridiculous and further alienates other people whose struggles are already marginalized. These issues of not living a colorblind world transcend UC Berkeley. They are rooted in our history from slavery to post-colonization, and are still present in our lives today. This is shown by the black people in the prison-industrial complex, entire communities experiencing environmental injustice and the low/unequal access to education in many of our neighborhoods including Berkeley's. These issues of tokenization can tear away at black students, and are ultimately leaving many people feeling as though they don't belong. In closing, I move to say that I refuse to be your black token. I refuse to arrogantly attempt to speak for all my people and ancestors as if I could even begin to encompass all their voices. I refuse to be made into a minstrelsy-dancing, singing or speaking as performance for you. As I said before this is Black History Month. I refuse to gloss over my history and pretend that equality is superceded. You see, I'm continually reminded why I am so proud to be black, not just in February. Our history does not simply symbolize struggle, but victory and overcoming all odds. All I ask is for everyone to acknowledge their agency and respect my people and my history as I do. -- Lajuanda Asemota is executive director of the Black Recruitment and Retention Center. Reply at [email protected]. . --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Sixties-L" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sixties-l?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
