Implicit Racism in Exeter's Culture

On our admissions brochure, Exeter is picture perfect. With students of color comprising 46 percent of the population and a curriculum that strives to be mindful of diversity, how could Exeter possibly still be racist? Isn’t racism something that died out in the 70s?I remember sitting in one of the dining halls my lower year, listening to the chatter swirling around me. A question that someone asked suddenly registered in my mind; a boy had asked my friend, another Asian girl, “So…do you eat dogs?” His laughter rang out. Taken aback by the statement, the girl remained silent as everyone around us chuckled and resumed their conversations.The answer to whether or not there is racism at Exeter is not as straightforward as we would like it to be. Like other wealthy, liberal and elite institutions, racism at Exeter is a covert experience. It’s easy to believe that racism doesn’t exist anymore, but many insidious incidents often lurk beneath the shiny veneer of inclusion. In my experience, you will rarely hear someone ever use a racial slur or express something blatantly racist in the presence of others. However, implicit racism manifests itself in other ways, such as casual comments that include microaggressions and jokes founded upon racial stereotypes. This issue is only further exacerbated by the silence that usually surrounds the table when the topics of race and racism are introduced.I am guilty of complicity too. After hearing the comment about eating dogs, I sat, dumbfounded. I should have spoken up, but something inside me held me back from confronting the boy about what he meant to say. Sometimes I remain silent after an unfunny joke or an offhand comment, more so than I’d like to admit, and I know that I have to do better.As an Asian girl, a non-black person of color, I know that my skin color already affords me a certain degree of privilege here. My experience is far from the worst, and far from the only one. We owe our students of color a space in which they don’t feel the need to constantly be on guard for the next racially-charged incident. One possible solution for this issue—or at least something that can be done to alleviate the problem a bit—could be an increase of faculty of color. There is a glaring lack of teachers of color on campus. While this does not directly increase or decrease racism on campus, more diversity of thought, experiences and opinions could lead to a slow adjustment in attitudes towards. More faculty of color would be able to better explain to other teachers the unique pressures faced by a student of color in the Harkness classroom, the different set of expectations that burdens them and the unique challenges they face, which would be more difficult for a non-POC teacher to understand initially. Teachers are incredibly influential, not only in their relationships with other faculty members, but also in their relationships with students, who could then learn from a culturally competent perspective. More faculty of color in general would improve understanding of complexities when it comes to racial issues on this campus. Racism has always been a difficult topic to address, especially due to the fear of articulating any potentially controversial thoughts on this sensitive topic. However, the alternative is simply remaining silent, and that will never be a viable option.