Though students of color currently compose around half of the undergraduate population at Dartmouth, many people hold the belief that Dartmouth is an overwhelmingly "white" institution. Some have even speculated that this sort of notion has driven away prospective students of color. Though the College has expended much effort to publicize itself as a diverse environment, the fact that such underlying tensions continue to exist suggests that something is amiss.
Beyond sheer statistics, the main selling point for diversity is that Dartmouth, like many other universities, offers a variety of culture-specific student organizations and facilities. It is true: Dartmouth hosts a large number of culture-specific clubs, organizations and councils, and offers exclusive minority-specific advising. These can be found for Asian, black and Latino students, who make up the largest minority groups on campus. It would appear that these organizations are clear indicators of active and thriving minority students across campus, of whose diversity the Admissions Office speaks.
However, true diversity is not measured by mere body count, but in degrees of presence and of integration. Though these culture-specific organizations cater to the unique and personal needs of these demographics, they are, with the exception of a few students, inherently exclusive to individuals of those cultures. Perhaps ironically, these organizations inadvertently promote self-segregation, quelling the diversity they wish to promote. In and of itself, the celebration of unique cultures is a great thing. Unfortunately, such celebration often isolates that minority group from the rest of campus, proving to be a largely separating force rather than a unifying one.
More surprisingly, the most culturally unifying organizations are those which have nothing to do with race. The Dartmouth Outing Club, DOC First-Year Trips, freshman floors, sports teams and even most Greek houses continue to draw in students from a multitude of cultural backgrounds. None of these institutions have racial agendas. And yet, if you asked me to point toward true diversity at Dartmouth, I would point to any one of these facets of our culture. Ironically, the organizations most detached from concerns of race are the ones who find naturally diverse company.
Again, this is not to say that these culture-oriented organizations are at fault. It is understandable, and desirable, to have outlets of personal and cultural empathy within the diverse Dartmouth community a cultural home base, if you will. The unity found within these organizations serves to remind campus at large that these cultures are significant and worth discovering. However, minorities must carefully consider the distinct trade-off between cultural self-absorption and cultural awareness. Self-obsession is blinding, and gives way to prejudices of equal disillusion like those we sometimes claim to see in others, such as the notion of "white privilege." It is easy for the minority to accuse the majority of racial condescension and suppression. But that specific remark merely serves as further self-segregation, as those vocal individuals are more interested in self elevation and the defamation of others than the unification of campus.
In order to foster true diversity, it would be best for the administration to begin helping and highlighting the College's strongest institutions, the aforementioned truly diverse organizations, as opposed to ignoring or sanctioning them. It is unsurprising that Dartmouth's most lasting organizations are its most successful in promoting diversity and pursuing their own specific agendas. After all, over the years, Dartmouth has become home to increasingly unique individuals from all corners of the world. In many ways, these student organizations are more caught up with the times than the administration.
What remains is the individual student. It is not at all my place to say just how much one should invest in one's own cultural heritage. But obsession, especially ethnic self-obsession, stunts the growth of the Dartmouth community as a whole. Though cultural heritage may serve as a personal haven, one that we find great comfort in, it is our responsibility to venture away from the familiar and to recognize that true diversity and cultural awareness come not from self-emphasis, but from selfless exploration.
