Written by: Lilly Richardson, Taylor Spence and Zoe Schweitzer

Lilly: Within the Diversity and Inclusion program at The Ohio State University, we are interviewing both African American and white students regarding their viewpoints and injustices seen at the protests regarding the Black Lives Matter movement. At Ohio State, our students come from multiple backgrounds, cultures and religions of all different states and countries. From latest 2019 acceptance demographic statistics there are 4,637 African American students which consists of 6.8% of total university students. Here with me are Ohio State students Taylor and Zoe who have taken part in the peaceful protests in Downtown Columbus. Taylor, what made you inspired and interested to take part in the protests?

Taylor: Seeing all the headlines regarding African Americans in the news and social media within our communities is really alarming. It makes me really question why these things are happening, so I want to take part in this movement to hopefully better our societal standards and the people within. If we can make a statement with these protests, then maybe we improve the level of equality between races.

Lilly: I totally agree that something needs to be done. Zoe, as a young adult, white female, what motivated your decision to take part in the protests?

Zoe: As a white female, I felt strongly to take action and support the Black Lives Matter Movement. As a student athlete at Ohio State, I was proud of the Kneel for Nine movement that we put together. We kneeled for nine minutes in honor of George Floyd’s life and came together to support the Black Lives Matter Movement. Specifically in athletics, athletes come from all backgrounds and ethnicities, and are supported on the field. How come, the same support is not shown off the field? The Guardian stated in 2019 that the NFL has a majority of African American athletes, so why are there voices silenced? My personal experience with athletics as well as the racial tension in society motivated me to take part in the protests. I believe that changes are made through actions and peacefully protesting exercises my right to speak up and fight for equality and justice for everyone.

Lilly: African American racial injustices have been dealt with constantly throughout history. Slight and subtle or large and impactful aspects of racism can be seen in schools, sports, families, etc. Taylor, have you ever encountered any microaggressions in your life?

Taylor: Could you define what a microaggression is?

Lilly: Yeah of course, a microaggression stems from subtle comments or actions that neither the victim or perpetrator may be taken offense to. These offensive statements can degrade one’s self image even when no aggressive attitudes or feelings are portrayed to harm people of color.

Taylor: When you explain what microaggression is, a specific TED talk comes to mind. This presentation is given by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichietitled The Danger of a Single Story. Adichie talks about stereotypes that become “normal” characteristics of certain groups of people or societal norms based on race. People can tend to unconsciously use stereotypes as facts, meaning they view certain characteristics as being true population wide. I feel this is seen a lot with the African American population and more specifically with the experiences of law enforcement toward African Americans or even teachers in schools. There is a study that was performed by American Educational Research Association (AERA) that concluded the teachers’ bias levels correlate to student outcomes; the more biased the teachers are, the worse the students’ learning results. The teachers perceive, evaluate, and treat the students differently based on their ethnicity, and bias plays a central role in those disparities. This unconscious racial bias and stereotyping is all throughout our societies and many do not even realize the impact it is making, specifically on the African American communities.

Lilly: The George Floyd case displayed the systemic injustice we have seen in the 21st century of equality. Zoe, can you describe what went on and caused not only a national but global movement?

Zoe: Thank you Lilly, and yes George Floyd was a catastrophic life lost due to the systemic injustice issues of the 21st century. After a misunderstanding with police, George Floyd was ordered to step out from his car. George was forcefully pushed to the ground while expressing he could not breathe. While handcuffed, he was placed in the police vehicle until he was pulled out and pushed to the ground face first. One officer held his back and the other forced his legs to the ground. The officer held his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds while George was expressing that he could not breathe. He was then put in an ambulance and taken to Hennepin County Medical Center where he sadly passed away. This sparked a necessary movement for justice and to put a stop to police brutality. This movement is known as the Black Lives Matter Movement that is about fighting for equality and justice for black lives. His has been an issue for years, and George Floyd’s death brought police brutality to light and forced changes to be made. Peaceful protests were happening nationally and globally fighting for justice and change in society. This catastrophic case represents the systemic injustice in our country and the fight for equality and justice that is being continually fought for. Taylor, what is your viewpoint on the George Floyd case and its national and global movements?

Taylor:The black lives matter movement has always been present, but the horrifying situation with George Floyd really encouraged this movement and made a huge impact. He was a victim of racism and unfortunately suffered the ultimate consequence.  I read a statistic from the NYPD that 85% of Aferican Americans or Latinos are frisked when stopped compared to whites at 8%. Makes you really wonder how the George Floyd case may have been different if he was white. It is statistically clear that more than likely the outcome would not have been the same, rather it would have been a much nicer outcome that would have never reached any media source.

Lilly:Both of you seem very intelligible and intellectual on the systemic justices of equality in America today. Racial inequalities can be seen in other forms of our society too. What areas of our world can we see forms of injustice?

Zoe: An area I have noticed injustices in is the educational system. As a whole, African Americans have less access to education than white americans. These differences begin at an early age and stretch all the way through college. There is also implicit bias associated with the teachers and educators in schools. Different funding amounts also discriminate against schools and contribute to the injustices in the educational system. When opportunities were equal and teachers were encouraging, minority students succeeded and had positive outcomes. The education system was revisited after the Black Lives Matter movement and improvements are continually being made. These changes to fight for equality are constant in our world and also our education system.

Taylor: Inferiority is something that lives within me on a daily basis. Within the education system, specifically younger aged students, there are “gifted” or “challenge”  programs implemented for the students. The programs consist of the school selecting specific students for individualized learning. These programs lack diversity, creating an inferior self image for students of color. A program that is supposed to better these students is affecting the mindset of young students of color. What we experience as children usually plays a large role in how our adult lives evolve. If the education system, a system that is in place to guide and teach, is exposing children to the idea of superiority and inferiority so quickly in life, how can we expect our societies to express equality across all races?

Lilly: Not only African Americans but other minorities struggle with the question of equality. No matter what background one comes from, they may feel subordinate or substandard. For example in the story The Reluctant Fundamentalist, it showcases the life of an Pakastani immigrant, Changez, as he tells his journey within America through the ups, downs and in-betweens. Changez lives through the time of September 11th, 2001, a life changing historical moment for all people. After the terrorist attack, America and Changez changed their outlook on one another. Changez felt inferior to America while America felt inferior to Changez. The challenge of inferiority makes those uncomfortable and less than they should.

Zoe:  As I mentioned earlier, athletes struggle with equality and having their voices heard. Even the highest profile athletes face difficult struggles with equality and injustices. These inequalities can be seen in administrative roles also, as 29 out of 32 NFL owners are white. There were several other issues including insufficient support and respect for players taking a knee for the national anthem by owners. Players are held to higher standards and receive stricter violations than owners. These inequalities have been brought to the surface and there have been multiple suggestions for improvement. In college athletics, there are injustices involving equality on teams and fairness. In 2019 in the Big Ten, 38.86% of football athletes were Black and 41.55% of basketball athletes were Black. The percent of Black athletes in the Big Ten is 14.39% but drastically decreases if you eliminate a few sports. Without football, mens/womens basketball, and mens/womens track & field, the percentage drops to 6.55%. This shows how overlooked minorities are in other sports. The Big Ten launched the Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition this year following the passing of George Floyd. This coalition’s goal is to empower athletes to express themselves while seeking ways to combat hate and racism. There are members from each of the Big Ten schools involved who will help spread the knowledge from being involved in the coalition.

Lilly: Throughout our conversations we have seen racial inequalities are present in many sectors of our society. In Zoe’s athletic background we have seen racial inequalities within the realm of the athletic industry. As students of the educational system we can ask the questions of equality as well. Thank you both for getting together to discuss the question of “Is this Equality?”.

Resources:

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Delgado, Paulette. “Systemic Racism in the Educational System.” Observatory of Educational Innovation. Observatory of Educational Innovation, 30 June 2020. Web.

Dodley, Lewis. “National Protests to Police Reforms – A Timeline Since George Floyd’s Death.” Spectrum News NY1. 01 July 2020. Web.

Fischer, Kim. “Systemic Racism Has Led to Education Disparities.” Temple Now | News.temple.edu. 25 June 2020. Web.

“George Floyd Is Remembered around the World.” The Economist. The Economist Newspaper, 9 June 2020. Web.

Hope, Dan. “Ohio State Athletes, Staff Kneel for Nine Minutes in Honor of George Floyd.” Eleven Warriors. 03 June 2020. Web.

“Members of Big Ten Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition Announced, Voter Registration Initiative Launched.” Members of Big Ten Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition Announced, Voter Registration Initiative Launched. 15 June 2020. Web.

OSU Statistical Summary. 2019. Web.

Robinson, Mason. “The Institutional Inequality of the NFL.” The Sideline Observer. 16 Aug. 2019. Web.

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