I grew up in a diverse town and went to school where the majority of the students were of color. I never really experienced being the "racial minority" of the population, with the exception of my AP classes and some extra-curricular activities, and I was not prepared for it. The college I go to currently is known for being liberal, proactive, and progressive and one would think it has to have a racially diverse population, but it's the opposite. I am a part of the extremely small 2 percent of black students at Whitman College and I would say my experience has been rough, but with sprinkles of empowerment.
When I first came to college the first thing people asked me was "Where are you from?" and I would reply with "Worthington, Minnesota" then they would look at me weirdly and they would say "No, like where are you really from?" Then I would proceed to explain to them my roots and what my ethnicity is made up of. I was never used to having to explain my ethnicity because back home I was surrounded by people that looked like me.
That 2 percent is more than a statistic on a piece of paper, to me it means that 2 percent of this school is marginalized, it means that 2 percent of this school is treated like a token black kid on a brochure, it means that 2 percent of this school only exists when race is brought up.
I can't begin to count the amount of times white people on campus have said "Black Lives Matter" yet defend themselves after making a racist comment. The fact that the Associated Students of Whitman College appoints one student representing diversity and inclusion yet appoints several students to a budget advisory board.
So when people ask me what my experience is here I can't help but think of how marginalized and small I feel against over 70 percent of white students and staff/faculty. On the other hand I feel a sense of empowerment from this feeling because I know there is something I can do to turn that 2 percent to 20 percent and so on. I want to graduate Whitman knowing that the future black students will find a home at Whitman easier than I did.
