With graduation ceremonies concluded at campuses across the country, state and national leaders are dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in higher education.
Noting these moves in states such as Texas, Kansas, Alabama and
It is crucial to consider the hidden barriers to true equity that remain, known as internalized racism—or the attitudes, practices and systems that Black people assume as the norm.
First coined by University of California-Riverside sociologi
As a child growing up in the South, I remember adults saying, “Don’t air out dirty laundry” when I spoke up observing others’ actions which entailed, “If I can’t succeed as a person of color, neither can you.” This is otherwise known as the crabs in a barrel mentality, and can be a force that can stand in the way of people of color moving forward.
As a Black woman who is also a DEI administrator and faculty member in higher education for over 15 years, I have witnessed both people of color and white people saying that they are immune to racist or bias acts because they support DEIA initiatives.
In 2021, Stacey Abrams, lawyer, activist, and former state representative of Georgia, said at the National Association for Diversity Officers in Higher Education virtual conference that people may support diversity, equity, inclusion and access initiatives, but may not support certain people actually doing it.
In higher education, simply supporting DEI initiatives in public while singling out one to two underrepresented faculty or staff does not make one immune to racist acts.
The 2021 novel, The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris later became a fictional series on Hulu in 2023. It highlights the experiences of the main character, Nella, navigating the workplace, and what happens when another Black woman is brought onto the team, as well as their experiences dealing with microaggressions.
Dr. Wendi Williams, psychologist, Provost and Senior Vice President at Fielding Graduate University, writes in 2020 : “It is often said that because white people could be uncomfortable with too many Black people in predominantly white institutional settings, Black people were left with fewer opportunities to advance beyond their life station. As a consequence, Black people compete with one another for those opportunities.”
In addition, Dr. Carey Yazeed writes in “Why Black Women Hurt Each Other in the Workplace,” “At some point, a few Black women in leadership roles stop identifying and associating with other minorities in the organization and begin to align themselves with everyone else who is seated at the boardroom table, which isn’t you and I.”
Acknowledging internalized racism in academia is not to place blame, but to continue raising awareness of a very real issue experienced by many Black colleagues across the country.
In their research, “Black Girl Glare,” Drs. Rebecca George and Alexanderia T. Smith from Webster University create regular spaces to not only gather, but to also acknowledge how internalized racism is yet another system of racism designed to keep Black people from supporting one another and celebrate successes.
As a teenager, I invited a Black female vocalist to be a guest performer (nearly 20 years my senior) at one of my first solo concerts in Texas.
The experience was disappointing. During the first rehearsal, she treated me as if I was in a subservient role. At the end of the performance, she took a bow without acknowledging me and walked off stage.
It has been my experience that white colleagues can sometimes further facilitate internalized racism when only hiring one or two Black colleagues at a time. A White administrator treated me as a problem when I asked questions and spoke up about equity issues. Instead of addressing the concerns, I was met with annoyance and avoidance, while claiming, at the same time, they were supportive to colleagues of color.
In higher education, the DEIA movement on campus can be complicated when long-established leaders feel threatened of losing their power positions. I have also been surprised by a Black colleague publicly attacking my work and attempting to undermine DEI initiatives, and airing grievances during a DEI-related event.
To be sure, Black women suffer from numerous microaggressions in higher education.
Recently more people are speaking up about the mental health of Black women, particularly in light of the 2024 death of Dr. Antoinette Candia-Bailey at Lincoln University and the President’s clearing of charges at the end of a third-party investigation.
There are avenues to solutions. American Association of Blacks in Higher Education has created opportunities for conversation and support. Faculty Women of Color in the Academy National Conference, which takes place annually at Virginia Tech, is another avenue for support and fostering community.
Dr. Cynthia Pong, JD, based in New York City and founder of Embrace Change, has offered solutions on how to feel supported in the face of the ‘pet to threat’ syndrome. This term was created by Dr. Kecia Thomas, psychologist and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Surely there is room for more than one person of color to be at the table in higher education. It is necessary to continue acknowledging and celebrating one another as Black academics make their mental well-being a priority.
