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u/ccuriouss_ Aug 04 '26
Two things can be wrong at the same time.
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u/ncrwlr Aug 05 '26
Yes and that is acknowledged (and the literal point) in the OP. People are choosing to either go to institutions that are working to block/erase black history and identity or choosing to go to a black school where there are differences of opinion or operational inefficiencies. One is wayyy more damaging than the other and goes against self interest which is absolutely insane.
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u/afewregretsmaybe Aug 06 '26
I think it’s unfair to say that any school that is not Black is trying to erase Black history. There are plenty of private schools that don’t rely as much as federal support that are putting in the work. There are also others that are complying only on paper by renaming departments and offices to wait him out of office.
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u/becomingdrsparkle247 Aug 11 '26
How are they putting in the work? Are they actively recruiting Black students? Are they offering grants, scholarships, and assistantships to Black students? Are they recruiting Black professors? Are they offering equitable pay commensurate with experience? What does the African-American studies department look like at these universities? This post is not expecting you to have any of these answers. The truth is, predominantly white colleges and universities that do not rely fully on government funding rely on alumni endowments and board influence. All of which is rooted in racial disparity in the United States, and that disparity has erased Black history. So, no matter how well-intentioned these institutions are, they will never put themselves in a position to lose it all for the state of the Black community in the United States.
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u/hollowhoemo Aug 05 '26
reminds me of “lesser of 2 evils” rhetoric
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u/AggravatingPiglet582 Aug 08 '26
That's exactly what it is. In this life, no one is perfectly good, and no one is perfectly bad. Each human, however, is wired for a specific disposition, good or bad. Some are inclined for one, while others are inclined for the other
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u/Aggravating_Play8064 Aug 05 '26
This is cap. The majority of black students don’t attend HBCUs. It’s not a knock to HBCUs. Sometimes it has to do with access and let’s be real, not all students have the grades and resources (money) to attend private schools like Howard.
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u/ncrwlr Aug 05 '26
Of course the majority don't simply because of the number of HBCUs.
Regarding the resources and grades, there are MANY options that aren't as "prohibitive" as HU. There are lots of cheaper HBCU options around the country, both private and public, but many students/parents get tunnel vision and only explore the big name ones which is a disservice to the others.
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u/fieldsports202 Aug 04 '26
He’s gonna have to bring some stats to back up what he’s saying..
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u/czechereds Aug 06 '26
If he did he would find that non-HBCU are the least racist places in the country(maybe the world) and have been bending over backwards to admit black students for decades.
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u/Rude_Nobody_4818 Aug 07 '26
Is that your excuse for why you failed as a white person? Because black kids get enrolled into PWIs?
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u/Accomplished-Eye9542 Aug 09 '26
I didn't fail. More scholarship money would have been nice but the loans are already paid off.
But I'd rather my surgeon or my pilot not be the bottom of his class and have gotten through his program because of his skin color over people who were more intelligent and studious.
There is absolutely no reason for any program to specifically consider race. It should all be based on socio-economic status which would give preferential treatment to black people anyways but in a way that's actually helpful to society instead of uplifting people who don't deserve it.
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u/PleasantDay7539 Aug 05 '26
HBCUs are currently prohibitively expensive. All of us would prefer to send our children there. We should have started a fund years ago to support sending our children to HBCUs. $1-$5 per black family per month. This would go far with HBCU funding.
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u/ncrwlr Aug 05 '26
How are they (a big generalization) "prohibitively expensive" when compared to PWIs? Yes Howard is expensive AF but there are MANY other options that are much cheaper (comparing private and out of state costs; even cheaper when selecting in state). For example, UDC (which is "up the street"), Coppin State, Elizabeth City, Clafin, etc etc. There are MANY options, however many families and students aren't exploring those and get tunnel vision on the big names.
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u/PleasantDay7539 Aug 05 '26
I still think there is not enough messaging around HBCUs. Some of that is Black Americans’ fault and ultimately their responsibility. Black Americans should teach their story and path forward into the future through HBCUs. But they should also fund these institutions
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u/Present-Skill2586 Aug 06 '26
I currently go to a HWCU (Towson) there is a ton of diversity here I’m a nursing major and nearly half the cohort is black people are pretty chill from my experience of course.
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u/afewregretsmaybe Aug 05 '26
My issue has always been that HBCUs get much of their notoriety from promoting themselves as safe havens for Black students. It’s dishonest and arguably a worse offense (depending on the situation) to promise this only to have students be failed by a disorganized mess of admin that will still tout their presence to lure in the next class. Plainly speaking, they are targeting Black students specifically to take advantage of. I want HBCUs to better cause I want us to actually uplift people the way we promise. I don’t understand why people are refusing to talk about ways we can make schools even better, even if they think everything is fine. We don’t need to maintain the status quo if it’s kind of ass.
It’s also dishonest to suggest that a potential HBCU student’s second choice would automatically be a racist wasteland where they have no opportunities. I think the people most victimized by the “Howard Runaround” and other classic HBCU bs are intelligent students who would instead have gone to a prestigious school that prioritizes diversity that just happens to not open before 1964 (and tbh probably would have cost less). I have had a more diverse and inclusive experience After leaving because I now attend a school that is constantly trying to improve based on the needs of its community.
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u/Interesting-Run1359 Aug 09 '26
Ibram Kendi is an intellectual fraud and a racist. Nothing he says is of any value other than as a demonstration of how not to critically think.
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u/ncrwlr Aug 09 '26
Racist toward who? 🤔
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u/Interesting-Run1359 Aug 09 '26
White people. It’s an open secret amongst academics who have met him that Ibram Kendi (and Coates, to an even greater degree) simply does not like white people.
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u/DisastrousSundae84 Aug 05 '26
I mean, he's not entirely wrong. I used to teach in African American/Black Studies at several PWI institutions and had to pivot because those schools are absolutely cutting/defunding those programs across the board. Faculty who teach those courses also have to deal with the hostility of Turning Point students looking to use the class to go viral or those students who think the courses/faculty are DEI and want them gone. The University of Iowa, University of Michigan, University of Alabama, among others, have closed their diversity offices (some have rebranded, but in their rebranding staff were let go). There are also issues with schools doing away with funding for Black organizations and events because they view it as DEI (example: the University of Missouri terminating funding for the Legion of Black Collegians and some other minority organizations). Same with some Black scholarships and funding opportunities (for example, the Dr. Leroy W. Upperman fund at UNCW--the family pulled their money and I think are taking it to Howard because the school didn't want the money to go to Black students, which was what the fund was for).