Minority students: the struggle for identity

By Annie Rose Ramos

Just another Friday night, and as you can expect from a winter quarter weekend, it was a night that just was not "happening." Recognizing our defeat, my friends and I decided to head to the Bronco for a late-night snack.

As we arrived, we stumbled into the Multicultural Center wrap-up to MCC Week, "Around The World In 80 Minutes," a fun-filled night of food, performances and a DJ. The event proved to be a solid dancing opportunity, so we took to the floor.

As we looked around, my friends and I realized that we did not recognize anybody. But most of the guests at this event had one thing in common: they were students of color at Santa Clara. Minorities. Like me.

My friend made a comment that offended me, but I didn't quite know why. She said, "These people don't go here. They must be from San Jose State." But these students do attend our school. Why are they invisible?

I am a Mexican American and I love my culture. Although I was raised in a privileged American, Caucasian society, I have been taught to appreciate my roots and to value the history, successes and struggles of the Mexican American people. I have been taught to be aware of the oppressions and stereotypes of minorities and of the ability to change what people think about you because of the color of your skin.

The level of discomfort my friends and I felt at this MCC-sponsored dance event was the same that many members of the MCC feel in classes or at events attended by the greater Santa Clara community, said Victoria Duran, Assistant Director of the MCC. Duran herself, a Mexican American student, expressed her own experience of discomfort.

"When I step out of the MCC Center, I feel uncomfortable," she said. Like how I felt at the MCC- sponsored event, Around The World In 80 Minutes.

According to Duran, people want to feel comfortable where they are, but many students of color on campus don't have that luxury.

But why is this? Why are minorities not given credit for being students at this school? As a minority I believe, based upon my own experience, that students of color are defined by limited terms.

For example, I am labeled a Mexican American before anything else. It is the first characteristic people recognize when they see me, yet the label assumes many misconceptions and stereotypes based on my ethnicity.

The epidemic of judgments based on stereotypes that creates this level of discomfort for many people, has been formed from media, communities, families, and from one's own personal experience. How I dress, for instance, could signify my economic status.

At Santa Clara, I have experienced wide social acceptance by the majority of students, perhaps in part because of the way I dress and the assumptions of my economic status that come along with that.

Simultaneously, I find myself asking whether or not I am abandoning my heritage by trying to fit in with the majority with the latest fashions and trendy devices like iPods and TiVo. Or am I broadening the perception of the identity of a Chicano?

"As a graduate student at Stanford, many rich white students dressed poorly, but those of color tried to dress the best they could," wrote Ramon Chacon, professor of history and ethic studies here at Santa Clara. Chacon is the son of poor Chicano farm workers, and he received his doctorate from Stanford University.

"My thinking was that I was representing more than myself," explains Chacon, who believes it "has more to do with one's commitment to social change, justice, and working on behalf of the community ideology."

A cure for this perpetuating epidemic, according to Duran, is to be willing to accept the challenge of being uncomfortable. Step into an MCC event or center or club meeting.

"You'll gain the perspective of students' experiences that provides further understanding and respect," said Duran, "and a more open perspective of an individual."

Racial and ethnic issues go beyond stereotypes. The struggle is also a quest for a sense of identity that the minority student carries within him or herself. Questions of identity that I have consistently asked myself are the same ones many members of various ethnic clubs have asked themselves, Duran explained.

At the "Around The World In 80 Minutes" multicultural event, my friend's comment was an unfortunate example of how the greater Santa Clara community has the tendency to discredit the role of minority students on campus.

"Because you have a different identity than the norm, you are not accepted," remarks Duran.

As for now, I don't feel like I completely fit into the white majority at Santa Clara because of my ethnicity. But that has not prohibited my involvement with that majority. I feel most socially comfortable with the majority.

I want to believe that my efforts to succeed in my academics, social life and self-esteem is a reflection of my attempt to change. I want to make a shift from an identity based upon my ethnicity to an identity rooted in my characteristics as a person, and along the way, expand people's perception of the Mexican American.

Annie Rose Ramos is a sophomore English major.