I asked her why she would even be thinking about that. Scene 3: Impromptu conversation between Black woman professional and Black faculty member.īlack Faculty Member: I just had a Black graduate student ask me if she should straighten her hair before going to her first professional conference. I mean, I’m sorry to curse, but I can’t be fake about it. This field does a great job of talking about social justice, but they suck at actually practicing it. I just want to have the fact that I’m struggling too – not just my residents and staff – to be recognized and supported.īlack Faculty Member: That sounds perfectly reasonable to me.īlack Student: Well, I was told that wasn’t his job and I should go to the counseling center.īlack Faculty Member: … … I’m sorry that you got that kind of response.īlack Student: Yea, me too. We’re told that we have a job to do and that we can’t stop just because we’re having a hard time. Have you talked with your supervisor about this?īlack Student: You mean my cis hetero white man supervisor? Yes, I did.īlack Faculty Member: So…? How did he respond?īlack Student: The way they always respond in this department when we – those of us who are People of Color and/or are Trans* – bring up stuff like this. I’m dealing with my own responses to all this and it’s like I don’t have anywhere to go to process that stuff, you know?īlack Faculty Member: Yes, I understand what you mean. Black Faculty Member: So, how’s it been going in your residence hall?īlack Student: Doc it’s been rough. Black student comes to Black faculty member to debrief how they are feeling. Scene 2: Aftermath of 2016 presidential election heightened racial animus on campus and in residence halls. Is that what it takes to be in this field? If so, maybe I made the wrong choice.īlack Faculty Member: Yea, I’m thinking of Stepin Fetchit and the idea that in order to be palatable and seen as not aggressive, Black people are expected to perform for the benefit of white people.īlack Student: Yea, exactly. I do smile when it’s warranted.īlack Faculty Member: Of course.īlack Student: I’m not going to shuck and jive just to be seen as professional. I’m minding my business you know and so that means I’m unapproachable?! It’s like they want me to constantly be having some stupid smile on my face all the time. Like, I just be sitting there at my desk doing my work or whatever. How does that make you feel?īlack Student: It makes me feel like there’s something wrong with me. My supervisor told me to try smiling more.īlack Faculty Member: Hmmm. Scene 1: Black student approaches Black graduate faculty member about assistantship climateīlack Student: I keep hearing from my supervisor that they’re getting feedback from other people that I look mean and unapproachable. IDEOLOGIES OF ABSENCE: ANTI-BLACKNESS AND INCLUSION RHETORIC IN STUDENT AFFAIRS PRACTICE I wish to express my sincere appreciation to the scholars and professionals who reviewed this paper and offered valuable feedback: Drs. Keywords: Afro-futurism, Afro-pessimism, anti-Blackness, student affairs Author’s Note These ideologies of absence are contrasted with four ideologies of Black presence. Offering a new framework, the author discusses four ideologies of absence: (un)belonging, (un)safety, (in)validation, and (un)reward. Using four scenarios reflecting composite narratives, the author discusses how inclusion hides the pervasiveness of anti-Blackness in student affairs practice. Ideologies of Absence: Anti-Blackness and Inclusion Rhetoric in Student Affairs Practiceĭespite inclusion rhetoric in student affairs, anti-Blackness shapes the experiences of Black graduate and full-time professionals, who are both hypervisible and invisible in student affairs.
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