Racism, implicit bias in the classroom
Graphic by Maggie Prosser.
*Editor’s Note: This piece was written by news writer Claire Del Vita and opinion writer Aya Cathey — it features a blend of reporting and opinion commentary.
The identities of both professors discussed in this piece, as well as one student source, have been purposefully left anonymous. At The New Political, anonymity is only granted in cases where the subject matter of a topic is sensitive and/or could cause harm to the individuals involved in the piece.
Racism is a prevalent issue in American society, but it often goes unnoticed in the classroom. It spills over into the books we read, the films we watch and the comments made by students and staff. Implicit bias is deeply ingrained in our ability to facilitate productive learning environments, and it jeopardizes the safety and well-being of students of color.
The deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor last summer sparked momentum within the Black Lives Matter movement. As a result, more students are speaking out against systemic racism and confronting their experiences with it on college campuses, including at Ohio University.
The n-word is not a foreign term. It is written into America’s history next to slavery and Jim Crow laws. For many years, it was a term that slaves used among themselves as a form of self-identification, Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor, associate professor of history at Smith College, said in her essay “The Etymology of the N-word.” Eventually, white Americans began to use it in a mocking manner to support their pro-slavery arguments.
Although Black Americans have worked to take the word back as their own, using it in music and conversation, it doesn’t make it okay for non-Black people to say it.
Pryor explained the impact the word can have in a 2019 TEDtalk titled “Why it’s so hard to talk about the N-word.”
“The six-letter word is like a capsule of accumulated hurt,” Pryor said. “Every time it is said, it releases into the atmosphere the hurtful notion that Black people are less.”
Maraya Brown, a junior at Ohio U, explained an instance where she heard the word used by a white professor. The professor used it last semester while reading the book Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys, in which the word is written multiple times.
“I had a meeting with her and another student of color, I guess educating her about why it’s inappropriate and simply shouldn’t be said by her,” Brown said.
Although Brown said the professor apologized and received the information well, a situation with the same professor in a class this semester again made her uncomfortable.
“She was saying that people make mistakes in terms of using words like the n-word and then she went on to say, ‘Right, Maraya?’” Brown said.
Brown said she saw it as the professor trying to relate to her or treat the situation as an inside joke.
“It was not an inside joke and was very offensive, and at that point, I just left her class,” Brown said. “It’s still difficult to be in that class, but I have to take it.”
Brown’s experience is not an isolated event. Another student, who will remain anonymous, said her white professor said the word while reading “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”.
“It was always in the context of the book, but it still made me uncomfortable,” the student, who is also white, said. “He went off on a tangent about why we shouldn’t say it and that it is outdated, but then he went on to say it nine times.”
She said the professor never apologized for saying the word.
Both women were hesitant to report their experiences for fear that their grades or reputation in the classroom would be affected.
Eventually, the situation regarding the book was brought to the attention of another professor, who said three other students had come to her with similar concerns. It was then reported to a Civil Rights investigator, who is currently looking into the event.
Both Brown and the other student said they wished they could drop out of their professors’ classes, but the classes are required for the students’ majors. The women are not the only students who are unhappy with how the n-word is used by professors. Pryor explained in her TedTalk the view that more and more students are sharing.
“Students across the country talk about switching majors and dropping classes because of poor teaching around the n-word,” Pryor said.
She admitted that she had glossed over it in her own teachings, but has since changed her ways.
Although both women shared instances where a book was being read that included the term, they said the term does not need to be read aloud; it is easier to skip over the word than read it and then explain why it is wrong. There should be a conversation, but that conversation does not have to come from using the word directly.
Black students should not have to be the ones to start this conversation either. It is not their responsibility. White students and professors must educate themselves and each other. For there to be real change, there has to be a will to learn.
Understanding implicit biases is a great place to start. Implicit biases affect our judgments, decisions and behaviors without us even knowing about them.
“Everyone has an implicit bias about many things,” said Nya Brevik, an Ohio U freshman and head of the university’s Young Democratic Socialists of America Racial Justice committee. “It can affect you negatively when it comes to things like race, gender, sexuality and ability.”
Educating yourself on issues of race, gender or sexuality can be daunting, but already knowing what implicit biases you hold can be helpful. Ohio U offers students the ability to take a test that tells them about what biases they have. It is open for anyone interested to take. But taking a test is not enough. People have to educate themselves on how to fix their biases, or taking the test at all will be pointless.
To report a campus climate and bias incident, contact the University Equity and Civil Rights Compliance (ECRC) by completing this form. The ECRC and the Office of the Dean of Students will review the information in the report and make the necessary referrals. In addition, the student will be generally referred to their academic college advisors and be offered the choice to complete a diversity training.
This past fall, the Division of Diversity and Inclusion began offering division-wide implicit bias and allyship trainings. The Core Trainings website organizes OHIO cross-campus workshops by three levels of learning outcomes: introductory, intermediate and advanced. These levels are centered on personal and social reflection, resource identification and knowledge Building.
Each training is directed by either Ohio U professionals at the director or assistant director level or an invited guest speaker. The trainers and speakers often represent diverse identities across gender, race, ethnicity, class and sexuality.
These trainings are only accessible by request, which can take up to two weeks to process. They are not often publicized, and little to no information is offered to students directly from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Additional workshops can also be found through the Women's Center, the Multicultural Center, and the LGBT Center, but students must email the centers directly to participate.
“I have hope for our generation and future generations,” Brown said. “That’s the reason I’m going to be a teacher. I think that just because we have these organizations and programs doesn’t mean that we are done. We have so much to do and so much to say, but I do believe that there will be a place where we feel safe.”