As Black History Month begins this February, people all over the country will reflect on how far minorities of all cultures have advanced in the 44 years since the Civil Rights Act come into being.
Within the UB community, cultural diversity has come a long way, with demographics showing a large growth in the minority population. However, officials and students alike said there is still room for improvement.
Dennis Black, vice president of Student Affairs, said racism does exist today but that it has evolved in its context throughout his lifetime.
"I would say that racism clearly exists today, although it has changed in my lifetime from being overt to covert, and from being institutional to more individual," Black said.
Black also said although racism does exist, students at UB have a great advantage to learn about new people as the diverse population offers students experience with people from all over the globe. He added that though UB and much of New York State is a cultural melting pot, students from relatively homogenous areas could run into problems of unintended ignorance.
"At UB, we benefit from the diversity around us but recognize that many of our new students each year do not come from diverse homes or hometowns," he said.
"Racism still exists to a degree," said Ben Turton, a senior communication major who is white. "I'm sure stuff happens all of the time, but nothing I've seen. I live in white suburbia."
Cultural inexperience is harder to come by at UB than ever before because the minority population has grown significantly since the early 1980s. Minorities of any background now make up 21.7 percent of all undergraduate students, a 10 percent increase over the past 25 years.
In recent years, however, UB's minority population has plateaued. Since 1998, minority population has dropped 2.8 percent.
"I think racism exists on this campus, but it's just not as prevalent," said Durval Morgan, vice president of the Black Student Union. "People who lived on my floor as a freshman, their views have changed since then and it's nice to see them have an open mind."
Because every student does not grow up in the same environment or is exposed to different cultures, Campus Minister Pedro Castro, Jr. said it is important for individuals to understand that Black History Month exists in order for us to understand the mistakes made in the past, which was neglecting to keep an open mind.
He encourages individuals to take a step outside of their usual cultural sphere.
"My encouragement would be to open up and experience a different culture," said Castro. "The real world is much different than how we grew up, so it's important to step outside of the box and to keep an open mind."
As Black History Month is upon us, students agree that there is a great deal of work to be done in order for racism and prejudice attitudes to be non-existent.
"Racism will no longer exist until all races, genders, religions are equal. Until then, there is a lot of work to be done," Morgan said.
How do you think Racism Effects students at UB?
Ivy Otiniano
Freshman
Nursing
"I think issues such as affirmitive action are unfair to other majority groups in regards to applications to graduate schools and tutoring programs"
Rhonda Lowe
Sociology
Freshman
"It discourages minority applicants from even applying or thinking about coming here."
Libby Brooks
Social Work
Junior
"It seems like peope do not integrate with toher races and feel more comfortable speaking in thier own languages instead of English"
Aniruddh Verma
Computer Science
Freshman
"I have not encountered any experiences as such so I can't say anything about it."
Gina Ferro
Psychology and Health and Human Services w/ Minor in Italian
Junior
"If you have a problem with racism, then you shouldn't be going to UB. Everywhere you look there is a different race and there's just no room for discrimination"
Alvie Cheng
Psychology and Sociology
Junior
"I've never been effected by racism at UB until just recently when I was told 'Maybe if certain somebodies would open thier eyes they could see better'"
Joshua Walther
Legal Studies/History
Sophomore
"Some people say that a lot of minorities are placed on South Campus due to race rather than in Ellicott."
