'Minorities' in 'Majority' Departments

[SymmetryOfImperfection]

That is appalling!! When you have those people controlling the majority of the thought, it is really a testament of why more diversity is needed in academia.

You'd think that. But to become professor they have to go through a long painful ritual that the other grad students tell me is "mental weightlifting", "building character" and other patronizing BS. The professor making inappropriate jokes was a minority himself.

[SymmetryOfImperfection]

indori, don't take it personally. its how they were raised and you can't change them nor should you change yourself. cheer up... it could be worse!

there's strength in numbers. see if you can make friends with people of your own ethnicity in your department and join the club of your culture.

Edited September 10, 2012 by SymmetryOfImperfection

[LastGradStanding]

I was the only black guy in my whole program for my first semester. Another guy came the next semester but he was from overseas. Being the only AA sucked. I always got stuck with the dirtbags for group projects because everyone from the majority would pair up so quickly that it would just be me and a few deadbeats left within a couple of minutes. This affected my grades twice. I had friends in other fields who had similar experiences. The dirtbags will do nothing and leave you to carry all of the weight, and if you get a B instead of an A they'll explain it away as the result of being paired with a black person.

[excusemyfrench]

I just wanted to say thank you to the OP and everyone else. This has been very interesting, educational, and dare I say, entertaining.

[socioholic]

I'm also a black female whose been the "only" in many situations.

I am done with worrying about being a stereotype. I roll my neck; i'm from the south and you can tell. I wear untraditional hairstyles and I listen to rap. I'm OK with that.

The hate (to put it simply) directed towards black ppl instiutionally and socially for generations is well documented; we're not just being paranoid or sensitive. It seems as though a lot of people have the perception that we ( black ppl) exaggerate our concerns.

My attitude is that I will not spend energy worrying about this. We have the right to be as "anything" as we choose just like everybody else and we dont have to put on a show for anybody. My works speaks for me. I have dealt with it by doing less to try and fit in and more to be as knowledgeable as possible within the given context.

[LastGradStanding]

I forgot to mention that everyone thought I was an ECE student. Apparently that's all that black men study in engineering school.