Saturday, April 22, 2006
I generally do not think that it is wise for an artist to make her one-hit wonder all about how she's made it. It's a little embarassing. And far be it from me to heap additional embarassment onto Kina's supple shoulders by invoking her words and thereby drawing attention to her flop, but the song, sung by a black woman, is especially apt.
Today there was a BALSA (Black Allied Law Students Association) Brunch, a sort of NYU sponsored post-Admitted Student's Day event.
Not shockingly, I was the only guy. There were, around me, 10 really impressive black women, 4 of whom were, like me, admitted students.
And also not shockingly, the conversation wove its way, amongst other topics, from Affirmative Action discussions in Con Law class to racism in the private legal sector.
"And so the hiring partner says to me in my interview," related Nessa, a beautiful and brilliant woman who hales from the heartland of America via West Africa, "'You're very articulate!' Really? I go to a top 5 law school" - "Top 4!" another student inserted, referencing the most recent USNWR rankings. "That's right, top 4. I was thinking, 'Did you think I wouldn't be? Is that the criterion for getting in?'"
What kind of comment is that to make? Not to make it always about race, but I'm starting to think it is always about race. I mean, is there a reason to expect that someone at a top law school wouldn't be, at the very least, articulate? Shouldn't that be the sort of thing that goes without wondering? Certainly without commenting.
"'So, uhm, I'm not sure how to put this...' is what the partner started to say in my interview," started another with a fabulous and well-maintained afro. "'We like to have a very professional look at the office and so, hmmm, we were wondering if you were going to wear your hair like that at the office. Perhaps you could put it down?' Yeah," she points to her hair, "this is down."
What is meant by "professional?" What is so unprofessional about hair that is groomed, but mostly left in its natural state?
Others confessed worrying about laughing too loudly at firm functions. "Others can laugh loudly, but lord don't let me be 'the loud black girl.'" or "And dancing. No, no dancing! They expect you to do it, they expect you to be good at it. You can't do it. No dancing." These are the things non-white persons encounter every day, enough that we can all talk about it and recognize what each other is saying, and yet so many intelligent white persons actually have the gaul to denounce racism, to claim that it doesn't exist any more, at least not to this extent. They don't realize that "professional" = "white" because they don't realize that they think "white" = "neutral" because they don't think "white" because they don't have to, because it's already there, it's already who and what they are.
Oh, law school is going to be fun.
promulgated by SWS2.1 at 17:47.
3 comments
3 Comments:
NYU sounds great.
Yeah, too many white people assume white is "default."
But as someone who was an administrator at a fourth-tier law school, I did notice that because our non-Hispanic white students made up only a minority of the law school class, they seemed much less likely after three years to assume that.
(The other thing I noticed about our non-Hispanic white students was that they tended to be the only ones who asked for accommodations based on ADD/ADHD and other learning disabilities.)
Re: ADD/ADHD - that's because to get tested and then certified as needing those kinds of accomodations requires money that, most likely, the hispanic/non-white students cannot afford (I speak from personal experience).
Out of curiousity, was she particularly articulate?
By 
, at
3:11 PM
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