June 2019 – Race & Racism at the University of Richmond

Delving into Greek Life

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 27, 2019June 14, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Joy Lim

by Joy Lim

Joy Lim is a Sophomore from Dallas, Texas majoring in Rhetoric/Communication Studies + Sociology and minoring in Anthropology. She is involved in the Westhampton College Government Association (WCGA), Alpha Phi Omega (APO), Delta Gamma (DG), Korean American Student Association (KASA), YouthLife, and is a mentor in the Peer Advisors and Mentors program (PAM). This is her first year working with the Race & Racism Project but she is interested in continuing this work in the future. She hopes to explore social justice issues not just on the University of Richmond campus but around the world as she continues her studies.

Since I already knew I wanted to research the topic of Greek Life, I continued further reading about race and racism within UR fraternities in hopes of finding more connections within Greek Life. In addition to re-exploring the exhibit on Racism in UR fraternities, I recently gained access to the University of Richmond’s online yearbooks. Historically white sororities started at the University of Richmond in 1987; knowing this date allows me to start my research in that time period. I plan to look through each yearbook starting from 1987 in order to find out what role race and racism played in the founding of sororities and their histories. I also will read through articles in The Collegian from the 1980s and 1990s in order to find more information on sorority history.

Preparing for Oral Histories

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 26, 2019June 14, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Jisu Song

by Jisu Song

Jisu Song is a sophomore from Richmond, Virginia not decided in major but minoring in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS). She has been involved with the Race & Racism Project since 2019 and is currently serving in the Oral History Team. As a student, she is an executive member in WILL*, member of Sirens, and a peer advisors and mentors. She hopes to work for global audiences.

As we moved into third week, Team Oral History started to prepare for interviews. As I meet more people who supports this project and articles that explain the importance of the Oral Histories and Archive, my passion towards this project increased even more. As I talk about this project to my acquaintances; I had many negative reactions. I heard some say that “racism is a joke” because everyone is treated equally. While I respect those opinions, our society holds racism in many forms. Eduardo Bonilla Silva, a sociology professor at Duke University, explains that new racism has formed after the Jim Crow Era. New racism shows that society itself has a racism by without using the word. It is very subtle, institutional that uses the nonracial mechanism. No one acknowledges that they are racist, but students of color still feel oppressed by many people, new racism is very real yet subtle. Free Egunfemi, the founder of Untold RVA, told us that we need to hold three characteristics: self-determination, resistance, and intersectionality. She explained that self-determination is doing what you are called to do no matter the situation, resistance is to find a new way to improve the world, and intersectionality is to gather diverse perspective into the topic. I truly believe that Race & Racism Project will allow all three characteristics to be existed not only for students but also for alumni.

An Unapologetically Black Space

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 24, 2019June 14, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Johnnette Johnson

by Johnnette Johnson

Johnnette Johnson is a rising senior from Marksville, Louisiana majoring in American Studies and French. Though her journey with the Race & Racism Project only began this summer, she has been involved in racial justice and community work since her matriculation at UR. A peer mentor and UR Downtown ambassador, when she’s not on campus or with family she’s out enjoying nature. She hopes to continue doing the work of commemorative justice and collective healing.

Black alumnus Stan Jones’ (’83) words rung in my ears as I sat in front of the university’s commons.

“Where I come from, you recognize humanity.”

More than Before

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 20, 2019June 18, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Gabby Kiser

by Gabby Kiser

Gabby Kiser is a junior from Williamsburg, Virginia majoring in English and minoring in History. This is her first summer with the Race & Racism Project. She is also the general manager of WDCE 90.1 FM, a design editor for The Messenger, and a Bunk content wrangler.

During my first visit to the University of Richmond campus in 2016, my mom commented “A lot has changed since I visited here.” She had visited the university two decades earlier when she was considering colleges. She told me that she hadn’t even applied to UR because of how divided it seemed, both by gender and by race. I never asked too much more about the topic, though, and she never brought it up. We were convinced that something had happened between our visits to make the University of Richmond a new, more inclusive place. I often forget that this was my introduction to the University.

The Emphasis on the Coordinate College System

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 19, 2019June 5, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Meghna Melkote

by Meghna Melkote

Meghna Melkote is a rising sophomore from Scranton, Pennsylvania majoring in Political Science and Philosophy and minoring in Music. This is her first summer working with the Race & Racism Project as a member of Team Archive. She is involved with the Mock Trial and Debate teams, performs in chamber music ensembles, is a member of the Phi Alpha Delta Pre-Law Fraternity, and is a content curator for public history platform bunkhistory.org.

One of the first things a student at the University of Richmond hears during orientation week is in which college they are placed. Students are selected into either Richmond College (historically a men’s college) and Westhampton College (historically a women’s college but, in the modern age, moving away from that label and moving towards “the support of underrepresented genders”, as it explains on its website. This includes women, transgender individuals, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming individuals). The University of Richmond operates under a coordinate college system, which historically has played a significant role both in academics, residence life, and social life. While both Westhampton College and Richmond College have long, separate (although intertwined) histories, the legacy of the gender-separated campus stays in place even in recent years. It wasn’t until 2002, in fact, that students crossed the lake that used to separate men and women and were no longer separated by gender. In Fall 2017, freshman dorms became co-ed. And currently, Richmond College and Westhampton College operate different student governments, honor councils, and student conduct councils with different rules and procedures. Additionally, a large number of orientation events are still separated by college, with Richmond College and Westhampton College attending lectures at different times, and participating in college-specific activities. As a first-year student especially during the first week of college, I felt the legacy and the weight of the coordinate college system significantly impacted my college experience (I’m hard-pressed to discern whether for better or worse, but the gender-segregated orientation definitely impacted how I interact with first-year men).

What’s in a Namesake: Admittance to and Omission from Public Memory

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 17, 2019June 5, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Cole Richard

by Cole Richard

Cole Richard is a junior from Orlando, Florida double majoring in English and Italian Studies and minoring in Linguistics. This is his first summer working on the Race & Racism project. He is also a resident assistant, DJ at the campus radio station, and student worker at the music library.

Sometimes I reflect on how little I knew about the University of Richmond the day I decided it would be my first choice school. Towards the end of the summer before my senior year of high school I went on a college visit road trip up the East Coast with my dad. The schools selected were a combination of ones that I was already interested in (Bard, Pratt) and ones my dad thought would be a good match for me (Duke, Washington & Lee). The night before we left from our home in Florida, my dad added one more the itinerary: Richmond. Flash forward two days, and my dad and I were being taken on an admissions tour of this school I had never heard of, yet instantly wanted to attend. Our tour inundated us with those facts familiar to any prospective student: that Ryland Hall is the oldest building on campus, named after Richmond College’s first president; that E. Claiborne Robins’ 1969 donation to the University saved the school from bankruptcy (hence the statue and various buildings bearing his name). I took this all as it was presented to me and continued on, paying greater attention to the way the sun broke through the tree canopy between the business and law schools, and the circuitous motion of Westhampton Lake’s ducks and geese. For that year between my first visit to campus and freshman orientation, these were the images that defined the University of Richmond in my mind.

There Is Nothing New Under the Sun

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 13, 2019June 3, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Shira Greer

by Shira Greer

Shira Greer is a rising sophomore from Fairfax, Virginia majoring in Political Science and minoring in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. This is her first summer working with the Race & Racism Project. On campus she is also a Richmond Scholar, an Oliver Hill Scholar, a Peer Advisor and Mentor, and a member of the Executive Council for a Multicultural Space at the University.

Before coming to the University of Richmond, I knew virtually nothing about its history. When applying to different schools, their histories were the furthest thing from my mind: I was only concerned with current academic and extracurricular offerings and of course, financing my education. Upon my arrival to campus, I was still clueless about UR’s history, but I soon came to learn more about it. I began hearing about the Race & Racism Project during my first semester and took a cursory look through the website and the student exhibits presented there.

However, it was not until I joined the project that I began to take a deeper look into the project, and therefore the school’s history. In examining the project website, I started with the subject lists. The “Black Power” subject heading was the first to catch my eye, as after attending UR for a year I couldn’t imagine the Black Power movement having much effect on UR’s campus. While my suspicion proved correct, I was surprised to find that Dick Gregory gave a lecture on campus in 1970, then again in 1973, despite alumni backlash after his first appearance. Learning about his unexpected appearances on campus reminded me how much I still don’t know about this university, yet a quote from Gregory’s lecture reminded me how little our social circumstances have changed. During his lecture, he told the students in attendance “You are going to be the group that is going to solve this country’s problems, or this country is going to fall,” a sentiment that is still repeated to my generation today. This similarity reminded me of the adage “there is nothing new under the sun,” which I found rang true throughout my dive into the Race & Racism website.

Greek Life in Regards to Race and Racism

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 12, 2019May 31, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Joy Lim

by Joy Lim

Reading over the exhibit of Racism in UR Fraternities was incredibly intriguing to me, as someone who identifies as Korean American, lower class, and female. Before applying to the University of Richmond, I knew very little about campus culture and next to nothing about the social climate surrounding student life. Before setting foot on campus all I knew was that the 2019 edition of the Princeton Review ranked the University of Richmond as the 9th most segregated campus in the nation. I didn’t think much about this issue as I wasn’t quite sure what a “segregated” community would feel like. Growing up in Dallas, Texas, I was surrounded by a diverse community, and I had the capacity to experience my Korean culture through multiple different outlets. Moving to campus was a culture shock due to its lack of culturally expressive opportunities, a dominating white demographic, and an exclusive social atmosphere. However, I found that joining student government (Westhampton College Government Association, known as WCGA) as a first-year student was remarkably rewarding as I had the opportunity to listen to student concerns and witness changes happening on campus first hand.

Where Is There Space for Me?

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 10, 2019June 7, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Sabrina Garcia

by Sabrina Garcia

Sabrina Garcia is a junior from, Waldwick, New Jersey double majoring in Leadership Studies and English and minoring in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS). This is her first year working on the Race & Racism Project, on Team Archive. Sabrina is in the WILL* Program, works as a writing consultant, and is training to be a PSMA. She hopes to dedicate her career to social justice and believes in the mission of Race & Racism wholeheartedly.

In making a decision on which university to attend, whether or not that school had inclusive policies or any initiatives to improve inclusion on campus for minority students was not something that I considered. I knew very little about the University of Richmond as an institution and simply chose this school because of its ranking and the amount of aid that was offered. Through my classes—I’m an English and Leadership double major and a Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies minor–I quickly became exposed to the history of racial inequalities that still effects the city of Richmond and to how the University of Richmond continues to perpetuate white supremacy ideology by not confronting its past.

Still Shares the Same Feelings as Students of Color who Attended in 1981

Irina Rogova Uncategorized June 6, 2019June 5, 2019A&S Summer Fellows 2019, Jisu Song

by Jisu Song

After I moved to the United States, I always looked for the space that I could express my pure self to the community. Moving to the United States, the very first feeling that I felt was about the necessity to fit into the predominantly white culture. I always lived in a predominantly white environment. I was privileged enough to live in a safe and studious environment, but I always found myself not fitting into the culture. I found myself not understanding people’s context, especially in the entertainment culture. For example, because I spend my childhood in Japan, I grew up watching Japanese animations, such as Ghibli, while many of my friends grew up with Disney Chanel, Nickelodeon, and more American TV shows. I found myself lost in the conversations and started to avoid conversations. Resulting from these practices led me to have two different personas. I always thought that what I do at home and at school should be different because I present myself differently. I found myself losing my Asian identification in the public.

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