HBCU Advocacy: Counterproductive and Damaging

The other day I was sitting in class and I saw a white person walked in, this would have never happened if I went to an HBCU. However, I'm anti-black and I chose to go to a PWI simply because more of my tuition would have been covered by grants. I've been told by HBCU "advocates" that there are no white people at HBCUs. Never mind the fact that the average HBCU is now 25% white. There's also a portion of HBCUs where black people are the minority such as Bluefield State College and West Virginia State University. This isn't about degrading HBCUs. In fact I think HBCUs are a great thing, in fact my first choice was Central State University.

What this is about, is so called advocates of HBCUs who have taken to challenging other people's blackness. People like Derrick L. McMahon who have come to the conclusion that if you do not attend an HBCU you hate your black skin. I'm glad more people are learning that they have the option of attending an HBCU. I'm not glad about people being shamed for not doing so. In fact it's counterproductive to do so.

When the main "advocates" for HBCUs spend their days telling other black people how they hate black people because they don't attend HBCUs it looks ridiculous. It's silly and it simply causes people to have a distaste for HBCUs. If you're a high school student looking for universities to attend and your first interaction with an HBCU "advocate" is them telling you that you hate being black if you attend a PWI you're not going to trust those people. It's going to drive you away from HBCUs. It's counter productive.

There's also a lot of misconceptions about what goes on at PWI or predominately white institution. You may be the only black person in a class occasionally but it will not be every class. You will not be followed by security to class to make sure you are not stealing anything. Believe it or not majority of PWIs do include classes over the African Diaspora. Believe it or not, there will be black faculty and counselors. There will be black fraternities and sororities. It may be on a smaller scale but I guarantee anything you find at an HBCU will be available at a PWI and it will not make you any less black.

I'm a firm believe of black people getting educated. I don't care if it's an HBCU or PWI. Telling high school students to go to an HBCU or don't go to a University is ignorant. It's simple, all HBCUs are not created equal nor are all PWIs. No matter where you go to school you will meet lazy people who manage to fail classes where attendance is 40%. For a lot of students the biggest factor is financials and sometimes people just can't afford to attend HBCUs especially when every state doesn't have an HBCU. You can't chastise a student because they made a decision based on their income.

A lot of people seem to be missing the point. It's not about HBCUs vs PWIs. There's only 103 HBCUs and thousands of PWIs. There are good and bad schools among both groups. The point is to get an education by any means necessary. Guilt tripping people into attending an HBCU is pointless because they aren't there of their on free will, and they aren't going to enjoy it.

It's simple, get an education. It doesn't matter where you get it. Don't let someone question your blackness or tell you that you hate black people because of your choice. It's simple do what is best for you. Choose the best place for your major. Choose the university you can afford. When you go to campus participate in events that interest you.

You can hear Darrell on the CP Time and Powerbomb Jutsu podcasts. He also plays classic arcade games on The Cabinet
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