Lately, whether on Twitter, Facebook or on college campuses, there are is one topic that tends to find its way on social media or into conversations. It is the debate of HBCUs (Historically Black College or University) versus PWIs (Predominately White Institution). The argument is basically centered around African-American students who attend both. As you scroll through Facebook comments or through a feed you will see people go back and forth on whether it is better for African-American students to attend an HBCU or a PWI. This debate has been going on for years and years and it appears no one side can agree to disagree, but why is that?
From my observations, there a few main arguments and points that people bring up. Job opportunities, quality of education, financial aid, and culture are the four points that come up every time I see this debate on social media. The more I look at both sides, as an African-American person who attends a PWI/international school, this debate baffles me more and more.
Job opportunities tend to come up more from those black students who attend a PWI. Some of them believe that being black and going to a school that is mostly white will grant them more job opportunities and will aid in them even getting paid more than an HBCU graduate. Well, students who attend HBCUs always come back with facts to refute that point. HBCU students point out the fact that there are many successful black people who graduated from HBCUs. For example, Oprah Winfrey, Lance Gross, Taraji P. Henson, Spike Lee, and Toni Morrison, just to name a few.
In my opinion, I believe your success depends on your own personal work ethic and hustle. It is up to you to make the degree work for you.
Black students on both sides definitely have to throw in who receives a better education. Some PWI students argue that they think they are getting a better education I guess simply because they are being taught by white people or men and women from other countries. Yes, that sounds bad, but people have their own opinions. I think it is unfair to say to HBCU students because they too are taught by white people and people from other countries, not just black professors.
Personally, I believe if you are being educated in general, you're getting quality. The fact we can even sit in a college classroom and learn is quality — there was a time when we could barely do that. I also would like to say that I believe black people equating white educators to quality is one-sided, close-minded and kind of an oppressive mindset to have.
MONEY, MONEY, MONEY….This point gets emotions flared to the max. Some HBCU students like to argue that black students at PWIs are granted more financial aid money. Then PWI students like to point out that HBCU colleges or universities are broke because of funding problems and because of that that is why they don't get as much aid. Basically, financial aid sucks at HBCUs and is better at PWIs. Honestly, financial aid problems can occur at any institution. I believe this point is by far the most irrelevant of them all.
Last but not least, the aspect of culture. There are some HBCU students who look down upon other black people who choose to attend a PWI. They believe that those students are stuck up or think they are better than them. Also, they like to argue that if you attend a PWI as a black student you will lose a sense of culture or a perspective of the struggles that black people face every day.
On the flip side, some PWI students argue that by attending a mostly white and/or international school you will gain exposure and gain a better respect for other cultures and for different types of people. I don't think an African-American student who is attending a PWI loses their culture. PWI campuses still have black student unions and NAACP chapters and even BGLOs (Black Greek Letter Organizations). Saying that a black PWI student will not be in touch with the struggles that we face on a daily basis is simply just not true. Racist and prejudice people are everywhere, and quite frankly going to a PWI reminds you of just how black you are — in some people's eyes, you don't belong there and you need to stay in a minorities place. But that is when HBCU students can come back and say "well if you would join your own people you wouldn't have to worry about that." Yes, literally this debate can go on and on.
Overall, I do not think this topic needs to be discussed for the years to come, although I know it will be. I see it like this — we are all black and we all are getting an education. Obtaining a college degree as a minority is a challenge in itself, so do we really need to debate and bicker on how and where we get the degree? If anything we should just encourage each other to keep pushing, get the degree and get out in the world and be black and educated. A good chunk of the world already doubts us and put us down as a race, should we really be doing that to one another?
