OOPS, I did it again. Despite my best efforts, I unconsciously "self-segregated" myself last week by sitting with other Asians in Newcomb. In doing so, I once again blew my chance to tear down the walls of self-selection by not sharing french fries with other communities.
As an international student who has lived in four countries and attended some of the most diverse schools, I have always found the assumption of self-segregation as a natural thing to be nothing short of laughable. As a student of political science, I think the argument that self-segregation occurs because "people naturally like to hang out with people like them" is a useless one because it does not explain difference in outcomes.
To put it in layman's terms, if self-segregation is caused by a natural tendency for everyone to associate with their own cliques, why does the University suffer from this problem much more acutely than other institutions? The answer has less to do with the universal tendencies of majority or minority groups and a lot more to do with the particular legacy of discrimination and segregation that is rooted in the history of the South in general and Virginia in particular. Taking this more nuanced approach to understanding majority-minority dynamics at the University allows us to focus on solutions, rather than being confused about the problem.
Arguing that self-selection leads to self-segregation is a weak argument because it doesn't tell us anything about causation. The argument claims that people hang out with who they want, causing the University to be more divided. But at the same time, one could easily see that divisions within the University also cause people to hang out with their own communities. In short, the self-selection argument not only does not explain much but fails to even explain well the things it does claim to explain.
The self-selection argument is also a self-fulfilling prophecy that absolves us of responsibility. If we all believed that it was natural for everyone to always want to hang out with their own communities, then we would not need to expend blood, sweat, tears (and columns) trying to strive for diversity. Why bother withmulticulturalism? Why not just wait for the Housing Division to force us to assimilate by taking away our choices?
But yet most of us do care. We care because we believe self-segregation is not a natural but a constructed phenomenon, arising from particular historical circumstances like those at this University. It is also only a temporary phase in majority-minority relations that can be transcended through active efforts by students, faculty and staff alike.
Yet the more heated debate surrounds what these active efforts should or should not be. Active efforts to bridge majority-minority relations should not be centered around ensuring there is simply at least one Asian, African American or Latino in Honor or UJC. Or that there is simply a Diversity Committee. While these are starts of sorts, they are embarrassingly low markers for sustainable diversity.
The more sustainable active efforts must be bold initiatives that build bridges between majority and minority communities. Carlos Oronce, former president of the Asian Student Union, told me in an interview that majority organizations "should take genuine steps beyond token diversity to form relationships with minority organizations." There are two ways this can be achieved. First, efforts like those of The Cavalier Daily to form a panel to address diversity issues among the readership go a long way in improving relations by encouraging diversity of perspective. Concrete initiatives like these engage and reach out to all communities in a bid to resolve the majority-minority divide.
Second, and more important, is the issue of leadership. Leaders of important organizations like Student Council, UJC and Honor should be steadfast in their commitment to diversity through various initiatives. For one, they should regularly attend meetings of cultural and minority groups like the Indian Student Association or the Latino Student Union. In addition, they can also actively go out of their way to try to ensure diversity of membership and leadership within their organizations. In an interview, Ryan McElveen, former Chief of Staff of Student Council, told me that he e-mailed individual students from communities of color and minority populations to apply for positions. Consequently, he saw a remarkable increase in applicants, and many of them were selected. Replicating the example does expect a lot from community leaders, but they should be up to the task.
Self-segregation is neither primordial nor natural. Rather, it is a constructed phenomenon that can be eradicated through bold student government initiatives that redefine "in-group out-group" perceptions. As Oronce put it, "Student self governance is a double-edged sword. It can enact sweeping changes but can also ensure maintenance of the status quo." Our job is to make sure we stick to the former rather than be stuck in the latter.
Prashanth Parameswaran's column appears Wednesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at pparameswaran@cavalierdaily.com.
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