Savon Bardell

Ethnic studies should be a requirement, backed by law, for all levels of education, for all kids, who will inherit the unjust systems we leave behind

Too often, when major social movements become overtly political, the rhetoric of hope, in turn, becomes a political tool.

It felt like if I could think of it, then it had to be wrong. It was no longer a judgment of my skill, but my own condemnation of myself within the space.

Microaggressions — as my sister and I know — are frequent occurrences: At some point in the life of each student who’s a BIPOC, you endure this unfortunate fate.

Even if magic wasn’t real, I found the need for wild imagination — especially amid the harsh realities of West Oakland — was profound.

While taking AP and honors classes, my sister and I would come home and trade stories about how the teachers would awkwardly stare in our directions after reading the N-word.

The privilege of patriotism is a luxury that Black Americans cannot afford. America prides itself on freedom, and yet treats its BIPOC as second class.

In freshman year, I had an ethnic studies teacher who posed an interesting question to the class: “When did you realize you were Black?”

I’ve often had STEM friends not understand why they have to pay our exorbitant tuition even for classes not clearly related to their major.

Just because UC Berkeley isn’t majority white doesn’t mean that it truly includes its Black undergraduates — and labelling our campus as POC-majority further erases Black students.