By Terry Nguyen
It’s 2016, and when the words segregation, black and housing showed up on my Facebook feed, I was wrought with concern over what appears to be an anachronistic issue in American history.
But, after five minutes of poring over news articles, I realized it shouldn’t have been an issue in the first place.
The California State University of Los Angeles recently announced that it will offer a housing option for black students to reside within its new Halisi Scholars Black Living-Learning Community. For many college students like myself, I don't think this is a big deal. After all, many campuses offer exclusive housing or residential halls that cater to students of a certain major, ethnic background or even similar interests. Is that termed segregation?
Nevertheless, the news took Facebook by storm, as #CSULA began trending with numerous articles claiming that this housing was pure “segregation.” There was little done to assuage the inflammatory responses about reverse racism or a growing anti-white sentiment. Provoking images, like the one from College Fix’s article (my personal favorite), show black cartoon figures and white cartoon figures divided, as if a new housing option for black students marks the beginning of some kind of revolutionary racial movement. The reaction to this housing decision was unnecessary and exaggerated, triggered by news media and sustained by racial prejudices.
In the wake of minority movements (#BlackLivesMatter) and prevailing racial violence, this “racial” housing appears to critics as a radical step toward dividing our country further by race. However, this is not segregation. There is no divide. These black students are simply searching for a residential space where they can bond and connect with others of similar background. The housing functions similarly to other options already offered at CSULA, such as the Gender Neutral Inclusive housing or Resident Scholars housing.
Whether it be racial, academic or gender-based, the intent remains the same. These spaces offer students a supportive community that many cannot find on campus, and for the Black Student Union to demand this accommodation draws attention to the difficulties that the black community is currently facing nationwide. Across the U.S, many institutions offer cultural housing, and so far, none have been as widely disputed. Stanford, Cornell, Oberlin and UC Berkeley are a few of those institutions who cater housing to Asians, Hispanics, blacks, Jews and other minority groups.
In addition, not all black students will be living within this housing, as there is limited space available. Students of all colors will be able to request the designated housing, but currently there is a long wait list of applications.
The use of the term “segregation” wrongly suggests that all black students will live separate from others on campus, attend separate classes and live closed off with an all-black community. That is not the case. Rather, the inflammatory attitudes towards these black students for suggesting a communal housing suggest greater racial prejudices that need to be addressed in this country. We are currently experiencing a new chapter of history in which we struggle to overcome these prejudices and boundaries. Although new restrictions and laws have been placed to try to create school environments of equal opportunity, racist attitudes still exist.
The ignorance that prevents change claims that “racism doesn’t exist” and that these black students are asking to be babied by the university. This ignorance scorns actions taken to implement change, claiming that they are “inherently racist." The ignorance continues to deny sympathy to people who have constantly struggled to prove themselves in the hopes of social change.
Like the #BlackLivesMatter movement, the call for black community housing does not seek to exclude non-blacks. It is a call for attention to the microaggressions and poor racial climate unconsciously aimed towards black students. As a non-black student, I find myself oblivious to the many racial issues in the college community. Regardless, we all have a social and human obligation to listen, sympathize and learn from these issues.