Our visit at the University of Zumbi dos Palmares in Sao Paolo was an interesting contrast to our other campus meetings. Palmares enrolled its first class five years ago and is the only Black university in Brazil. We learned that Palmares recently graduated its first class of twenty one students, which constituted the largest number of Afro-Brazilian students to graduate from any university in Brazil. This statistic shows the dire inequality among races in Brazil given that nearly half of the population is Afro-Brazilian.
This visit was different because the Palmares students did not talk about feeling isolated in the classroom or feeling like they had to fight to show they had a right to be on campus. This is not to say that there is widespread support for this university. The President, Dr. Jose Vicente, told us that there is a lot of resistance to the university because it enrolls almost all Black students. It was a big challenge just to get the university established and to graduate its first class last year. Nonetheless, on the Palmares campus the students have a much greater sense of belonging and camaraderie than the Afro-Brazilian students we talked to at primarily white schools.
In Salvador, Afro-Brazilian students spoke of feeling alone and ostracized in the classroom and on campus generally until they began participating in workshops and programs through Black NGOs that aim to increase Black enrollment and create an environment in which these students have an entire network of support behind them. This support allowed the students to speak up in class and challenge racist behavior and comments, which significantly improved their experience. While these students felt more supported through their involvement with these NGOs, they still did not feel as welcomed and at home as the Palmares students.
Many of our own students of color could relate to the experiences of the Salvador students. Spending time at Palmares was personally important for them because it showed that their isolating experience at UCLA Law could have been different if higher numbers of students of color were enrolled here. While supporters of affirmative action, whether people of color or white, know that being part of a small minority on campus makes it more difficult for the students to learn because of racial isolation and discrimination, visiting a campus where challenges exist but that being entitled to attend school is not one of them, brought home this point in a new and powerful way. We need affirmative action back in California.
This visit was different because the Palmares students did not talk about feeling isolated in the classroom or feeling like they had to fight to show they had a right to be on campus. This is not to say that there is widespread support for this university. The President, Dr. Jose Vicente, told us that there is a lot of resistance to the university because it enrolls almost all Black students. It was a big challenge just to get the university established and to graduate its first class last year. Nonetheless, on the Palmares campus the students have a much greater sense of belonging and camaraderie than the Afro-Brazilian students we talked to at primarily white schools.
In Salvador, Afro-Brazilian students spoke of feeling alone and ostracized in the classroom and on campus generally until they began participating in workshops and programs through Black NGOs that aim to increase Black enrollment and create an environment in which these students have an entire network of support behind them. This support allowed the students to speak up in class and challenge racist behavior and comments, which significantly improved their experience. While these students felt more supported through their involvement with these NGOs, they still did not feel as welcomed and at home as the Palmares students.
Many of our own students of color could relate to the experiences of the Salvador students. Spending time at Palmares was personally important for them because it showed that their isolating experience at UCLA Law could have been different if higher numbers of students of color were enrolled here. While supporters of affirmative action, whether people of color or white, know that being part of a small minority on campus makes it more difficult for the students to learn because of racial isolation and discrimination, visiting a campus where challenges exist but that being entitled to attend school is not one of them, brought home this point in a new and powerful way. We need affirmative action back in California.
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