Katherine Mijal
ENGL 401
Final Paper
3 May 2011
Language and Identity for African Americans at UIUC
Introduction:
For a campus that publicly promotes its diversity, UIUC has not been as successful as
many may assume. My research question is, “How has the African American culture and
community at UIUC dealt with racial politics and how has this movement affected students’
identities on campus?" I do not have a lot of knowledge of minority groups on campus and I was
interested to learn more about them and some of the cultural programs offered to create these
inclusive communities. As a white female from a fairly homogenous suburb, I chose African
Americans because I took an AFRO 100 class freshman year and I know a couple of African
Americans that have had diverse backgrounds that brought them to UIUC. I hoped that my
research could bring me in an exciting direction.
Over the summer, I met two African American students at my internship with Travelers
Insurance. One of my subjects learned about the internship through the Posse organization, a
college access and youth leadership development program geared toward minority students.
Both are Business majors at UIUC and I have found it enlightening to look at their involvement
on campus in regards to their cultural background. I interviewed these two students about their
life experiences with language and how their African American culture has affected their identity
at UIUC. During my research process, I also observed a Ma’at meeting. Ma’at means “African
goddess” and this is a group of approximately 30 students and two adult advisors. They meet
once a week to discuss ways to strengthen the African American community at UIUC as well as
to increase African American student enrollment. Since I do have a limited background, I have
been excited during my interview and research process to learn more about another race and their
attachment to culture and language.
I think this research question matters because many UIUC students do not know enough
about the rest of their peers. For a campus that attempts to promote unity and tolerance, I am
aware of much segregation. I think the student population will benefit from my ethnography by
learning more about the African American population at UIUC from two different students’
perspectives. Lippi-Green writes “The Standard English Myth” and this article provides reasons
for how Standard English differs from African American English and how different vernacular
languages are perceived negatively by the majority of society. He says, “An even more complex
and ideologically fraught issue is what to call those varieties of English which are not African
American Vernacular English. It seems that this problem is solved by refusing to address it, for
the most part” (62). Through my ethnographical results, I hope that I am changing this claim by
attempting to persuade students to address the problem of identifying different types of spoken
language. Having researched this, I may even be able to show people that the language itself is
more important than the label society gives it.
While I could not predict my results, I did have a hypothesis on the type of information I
would obtain. Since I am friends with both of my subjects, I have spoken to them about their
lives on campus. Matt (names have been changed to protect subjects’ privacy) is only partially
involved with African American groups on campus. He lives with a European American
fraternity member and spends most of his spare time with European Americans. Clarissa, my
second interview subject, is heavily involved in African American cultural groups as well as
working as a Resident Advisor in the predominantly European American dorms. Most incoming
UIUC students make their decision about living based on what older friends from their high
school tell them. This is why a racial division seems to exist. I felt that interviewing both the
subjects would provide a good contrast of African American life on the UIUC campus. I believe
that being involved in an African American cultural lifestyle will correlate with a student feeling
a stronger identity to their background. The somewhat controversial racial politics at UIUC
seem to have struck a chord for my interview subjects.
Background:
Matt was born in Carbondale, IL where his parents finished their doctorate degrees at
Southern Illinois University; his father earning his in Theology while his mother’s focus was on
Special Education. Matt’s parents moved to Flossmoor, a predominantly European American
suburb of Chicago when Matt and his older brother were children, and it was there that he began
learning how to write and read. Since Matt’s mother is involved in the education sector, she
always put a large emphasis on reading while Matt was a child. Thanks to an Accelerated
Reader program at his elementary school, Matt began reading at a 12th grade reading level when
he was only in 5th grade. Matt continued to excel in school throughout his educational career and
was fortunate to attend a school district where many resources were available to students in
terms of college preparation.
While Matt was a happy and successful child and teenager, he was aware that he was one
of the few African American students in the Flossmoor School District. Matt says, “Growing up,
you don’t really notice any differences and don’t take into account skin color. I did grow up in a
predominantly white area and it wasn’t until I was 10 or 11 when I started noticing racial tension.
I just learned to accept it and see it as more of a positive and something to be proud of. We’re all
more alike than different and sometimes subtleties just get overblown. My parents both worked
in predominantly white situations and so I was used to how things were for them too.” Because
of Matt’s optimistic opinion, race did not play a negative role for him. His parents’ prestigious
jobs and intellect convinced Matt that college was the next step after high school.
My other subject, Clarissa had a slightly more difficult path before arriving at UIUC.
Clarissa is one of ten children ranging from 17 to 31 years old, and they have all grown up in the
city of Chicago. While this large family means that Clarissa is very close to her siblings, it also
is difficult to support so many children. Her dad has had a number of jobs, mainly working for
UPS and at the airport. Clarissa’s mother stayed at home while the children were growing up but
also does work for the church. When talking about reading and writing as a child, Clarissa’s
most memorable moments happened at church. This is where she first recalls reading Bible
lessons and having Bible flashcards. Clarissa’s parents did not spend much time reading at home
and Clarissa wishes that the Chicago Public School system made reading more of a priority.
Unlike Matt who grew up around European Americans, Clarissa said that she grew up
sheltered, surrounded only by African Americans. In high school, Clarissa spent time with a
diverse group and told me that her friends included African Americans, Latinos, and Arabians.
Clarissa sees many downfalls to the Chicago Public School system but was determined to do as
well as she could. Aware that she would need financial aid and scholarships in order to attend a
university, Clarissa was excited to be nominated and then chosen through multiple interviews to
be a Posse scholar. As mentioned previously, Posse provides highly motivated minority students
with a full tuition scholarship for all four years of college as well as many internship and
networking opportunities. Matt was able to attend UIUC because of his high grades and his
parents’ income and Clarissa was able to because she received the Posse scholarship.
Unfortunately, many African American high school students do not have these opportunities.
Admissions Process & Affirmative Action:
Matt transferred to UIUC his sophomore year of college because he spent his freshman
year playing soccer at North Park University in Chicago. After deciding not to pursue soccer
any longer, Matt debated attending UIUC, Auburn or University of North Carolina for his
sophomore year. He decided on UIUC because it would be in-state tuition and he knew they had
an excellent program. However, he also was familiar with the school because of the Illinois
Academic Enrichment and Leadership Program offered at his high school which allowed
minority students to study Business for four weeks at a chosen university. The summer after his
junior year of high school, Matt spent a month at the University of Virginia learning about
business and living on campus. Through this program, Matt also made a visit down to UIUC
during his high school career and was given the opportunity to meet the deans of the College of
Business. This later helped sway his decision.
Posse gave Clarissa a list of 10-15 colleges to choose from to attend. Each year, Posse
adds more colleges to the list and it is now approaching 30 schools. Universities and colleges
form partnerships with each other to increase the attendance rate of minority students in colleges.
Posse has headquarters in all of the big cities in the country and they form a posse of ten
multicultural students to attend a specified school each year. The organization pays tuition, and
the posse of students at the university meets weekly for meetings. UIUC is no longer affiliated
with the Posse organization but Clarissa and her other nine posse teammates will continue to
have their educations paid in full. The University of Illinois chose to discontinue their
partnership with Posse because of funding issues. Clarissa told me that, “Posse also pairs with
many different businesses and companies. The businesses offer Posse members internship
positions and Posse is providing them with hardworking diverse college students. I interned for
corporate Victoria’s Secret after my freshman year of college and Posse also helped me get the
job at Travelers for last summer and this upcoming one.” Being a part of Posse continues on after
college by providing job and networking opportunities among Posse alum.
Matt and Clarissa were both able to tap into some great programs to help their college
careers and to strengthen their African American identities. However, they also have both
expressed their concern about the low number of African Americans on campus. One way that
the U.S. has tried to rectify this issue was by the implementation of Affirmative Action. The
“Affirmative Action” article that I read addresses this equal opportunity movement that began in
the 1960s through JFK. Matt told me that while it was created with race in mind, this movement
revealed to the nation the disparities in pay and quality of life for all minorities. “In 2000, the
median weekly earning for blacks was $459; for Latinos it was $395. In that period, average
income for whites was $590. Workers of color are still concentrated in the less well-paying,
unskilled sector” (ACLU, 1). Matt’s father worked as both an engineer and a minister while
Matt was growing up, and therefore Matt did not have to struggle financially as some minorities
do. Three of Clarissa’s older siblings did not attend college because her family could not afford
to send them. This is a reality for many with today’s economy, but is hitting minority students
the most.
There is an assumption that minorities are accepted into colleges and given job positions
as a means of attempting to create a diverse group of people. Matt and I began a long discussion
debating whether there is any ideal situation when it comes to race. He told me that UIUC only
has approximately 3,000 black students which make up 3-4% of the student population. This
makes him feel that it is more difficult to maintain a strong African American identity on campus.
When I attended the Ma’at meeting where Clarissa is co-president, the group spent the night
discussing this problem and looking at the statistics. African Americans make up the lowest
percentage of minority students on campus besides Native Americans. According to selfreported statistics from Fall 2010, African Americans only comprise 1,784 of the 31,252
undergrad students at UIUC. Matt majors in Finance and Clarissa in Accountancy, and they are
aware that there are only 85 black students in the College of Business. According to Matt, UIUC
does not appear to use Affirmative Action since the number of African American students at the
university is so low.
In 2006, the state of Michigan made Affirmative Action illegal because of controversy
over the University of Michigan’s admissions process which rewarded students with extra points
in the process based on skin color (“Affirmative Action”). UIUC has followed this law but it has
resulted in a small black population on campus. UIUC student researcher Tom Okonoko
observed an Affirmative Action debate that took place in Lincoln Hall during the spring of 2008.
The debater, Dr. Dyson, promoted the merits of Affirmative Action. “Dr. Dyson made points
about how over the years blacks have been denied “legitimate social goods” which has had a
strong intergenerational effect on the admission process of many blacks” (Okonoko, Pg. 9). This
helps to explain why UIUC has a small number of black students. While Matt has grown up
privileged, he wants more resources to increase the black student population. Clarissa did not
truly appreciate her African American roots until arriving at UIUC and spends her elective hours
taking AFRO classes and learning more about what her ancestors endured. By growing up in a
predominantly African American neighborhood, Clarissa did not spend time comparing different
races like some children do when discovering their ethnic identity.
Based off Matt and Clarissa’s accounts as well as my research, it appears that financial
aid is the biggest deterrent to African American students attending college. Though there are
many scholarships available to black high school students, many do not even have the resources
to apply for these. Matt expressed how unfortunate it is that there may be a very intelligent
teenager living in the inner city of Chicago who will never have the opportunity to attend college
to develop skills and learn how to succeed in standardized testing situations.
Like many movements, Affirmative Action was created with the best of intentions.
However, it angered enough people and was referred to as ‘reverse discrimination’ by many
whites that it has now been forbidden by schools and workplaces. At the university level, Matt
and Clarissa are involved in the National Black M.B.A. Association which prepares students of
any major to eventually earn an M.B.A. Matt is also a member of Identify Illinois which is a
diversity outreach group in the athletic department that strives to get more minorities involved in
athletic events on campus. Both of these groups are trying to close the race gap but I wonder if
irreparable damage has already been done.
Clarissa has been heavily involved in programs during her three years here as well.
Freshman year, she joined a group called One Hundred Strong for African American freshmen
students. It was led by upperclassmen to mentor the students and help them meet other African
American students on campus. Her sophomore year, she joined the National Association for
Black Accountants, and also was hired as a Resident Advisor mid-year. Clarissa reports that as
an R.A., “The experience was stepping outside my comfort zone. I was the only black person
and none of my residents were black. It gave me communication skills though and I have loved
my residents. I’m not geared toward one race; I just want to reach out to young women.”
Clarissa and her best friend also chose to live in the Peabody dorms freshman year because they
knew about the European American stereotype of students who resided there. “The reason that I
chose to live in the Six Pack is because I knew a lot of black people would be living in
PAR/FAR and that it would be a distraction to me. I do have mainly black friends in college but
Posse has showed me how to be more open-minded and multicultural.” Clarissa has mature
views on race and seems to have gained confidence by being exposed to other races at UIUC.
Matt was placed in the Six Pack dorms when he transferred here and said that although he was
with predominantly white students, he did not mind being the minority. While having these
racial stereotypes about the dorms may provide security for the residents, it also decreases the
diversity at UIUC. I think that more students should act as Clarissa and Matt did and choose to
live in a space outside of their comfort zone. She also works on the Black Student Union by
serving black students in the dorms with different programs. An upcoming program is a flash
mob that will occur in the cafeteria to raise awareness about race.
Though programs like the ones that Matt and Clarissa are involved in exist at many
universities, it is more of a challenge to find opportunities for black students to get a college
education than be involved on campus. Because of this and the illegality of Affirmative Action,
I think both the U.S. and Illinois specifically should provide funding for current college students
to spend time traveling to low income areas and informing high school students about options,
offering free tutoring and test preparation. Many black people have fallen through the education
system’s cracks and after talking to my subjects, I realized that many are not as fortunate as they
were in obtaining degrees. Matt’s parents were unique in that they both earned higher education
degrees. Research has been done to show that few African Americans had the resources and
funds to further their learning. “In 1987 only 787 African Americans earned doctorates.” This
year’s total is nearly 2.4 times that amount which shows that progress has been made and is
encouraging for African Americans like Matt and Clarissa who are trying to succeed at the
college level (Doctoral Degree Awards to African Americans Reach Another All-Time High).
However, this statistic will not increase without effort and funds put into the movement to
increase African American college enrollment.
Life at UIUC & Future for African American Students:
From my interviews, Matt and Clarissa both seem very well adjusted to UIUC life and to
embracing their African American identities. However, as I delved deeper into the subject,
Clarissa revealed that there are still holes in the community. She said, “You would think that
having a small number of black people would make us closer but it doesn’t. I didn’t come here
looking for other black students. In some senses, I feel like it’s kind of divided. When push
comes to shove, we can come together but we don’t really.” She did say that the African
American students in the College of Business definitely stick together and help each out with
challenging homework and exam preparation. The black athletes on campus “do their own thing”
because Clarissa says they get the support they need. This division that Clarissa labels may be
why Ma’at and other African American groups on campus are not as successful with their
initiatives as they hope to be. It seems that the biggest thing the African American students are
looking for is a support network to fall back on when college becomes challenging. The larger
community they have, the more resources the students will have available to them.
The UIUC Student Senate has recently elected an African American freshman to the
board. He spoke at the Ma’at meeting that I observed and encouraged the other black students to
come to the meetings to show President Hogan how important it is to increase African American
enrollment and to provide funding for projects. Four UIUC ethnographers did a project
researching the admissions process at UIUC to see if changes have been made to incorporate a
larger percentage of multicultural students. After interviewing an admissions counselor the
group writes that, “As far as affirmative action goes, the counselor made it clear that some high
schools offer more opportunities and resources than others. This being said, the admissions
department will judge an applicant’s performance based off of the means available to the
applicant. Regardless of the high school attended and assuming test scores are acceptable, only
students with obvious potential for success in college will be accepted into UIUC” (Krause, 9).
It is rather disheartening because although the best attempts are made, many students may not
show ‘obvious potential for success in college’ and therefore will not be admitted into their state
university.
Students of all races on campus should join in the quest to make college more attainable
for minority students. Both Matt and Clarissa are constantly aware of their race and are proud of
the improvements that have been made at UIUC. To answer my research question, UIUC does
provide a rich array of programs and opportunities for African American students. However, the
statistics show us that is not enough. Clarissa told me that she “definitely has a passion to serve
in the African American community.” She mentioned that, “It’s hard to transition and you can
definitely feel left out. You may want to drop out especially coming from the Chicago Public
Schools where you don’t have the best foundation.” Matt and Clarissa both agree that a support
system is necessary and that the more diverse the campus is, the more college students will learn
from each other. A student comes to college to find an identity and the African American
community at UIUC is striving to make a larger identity for themselves on campus.
Works Cited:
American Civil Liberties Union. “Affirmative Action.” ACLU Position Paper (2000). Web. 8
April 2011.
-This article promotes the importance of Affirmative Action and provides statistics about its
success rate and salaries.
Bergman, B.R., and G.E. Curry. “Affirmative Action.” Credo Reference: Dictionary of Race,
Ethnicity, and Color (2003). Web. 15 March 2011.
-Bergman and Curry’s article on Affirmative Action reveals background knowledge on minority
entrance into college and the debates it creates regarding fairness in the education field.
“Doctoral Degree Awards to African Americans Reach Another All-Time High.” The Journal of
Blacks in Higher Education (2004). Web. 3 April 2011.
-This article provides information on African Americans in higher education and statistics on
graduate degrees.
Kraus, Jake; Madrigal, Jim; Odusanya, Tobi; Rizzie, Jamie. “Race, Ethnicity, and Admissions at
UIUC.” IDEALS (2003). Web. 9 April 2011.
-This ethnography discusses changes in the admissions process due to changing demographics
and racial equality. The UIUC Admissions Department was interviewed to learn about UIUC’s
promotion of more international students and minority students.
Lippi-Green. “The Standard English Myth.” Pgs. 53-62. 15 March 2011.
-“The Standard English Myth” provides reasons for how standard English differs from AAE and
how different vernacular languages are perceived negatively by the majority of society.
Okonoko, Tom. “The Affects of Affirmative Action at University of Illinois.” IDEALS (2008).
Web. 10 April 2011.
-Okonoko conducted an ethnography three years ago in which he observed an Affirmative
Action debate at UIUC and interviewed both black and white students on their opinions on the
concept.
Samara Shever Ripps. "CAN WE TALK ABOUT RACE? AND OTHER CONVERSATIONS
IN AN ERA OF SCHOOL RESEGREGATION. " Colorlines 1 Jul 2007: Ethnic
NewsWatch (ENW), ProQuest. Web. 15 Mar. 2011.
-Ripps’ information shows how race and education have always battled against each other in
schools, trying to create an open forum where ever student, regardless of skin color, feels
welcome.