Proving Ourselves Twofold
Right now I work five hours a week so that I have personal spending money. I am only able to work so little because I have been lucky enough to get outside scholarships that cover my income and summer contribution. I recognize my own very lucky situation. Every day I see students working more hours than me because they have to meet the contribution demand. They work more hours than me but participate in activities as well and also take rigorous coursework. My friends work their hardest so that no one can question why they are at Yale. But they shouldn't have to prove themselves. They should not have to choose between a job and an extracurricular activity. True, other people not on financial aid also have to choose between activities but that is at their own discretion. They don’t have the University telling them they have an obligation to work for part of their tuition. At the end of the day, all Yale students who got accepted have drive and ambition. There is no point to checking this drive and ambition with the contribution requirement.
Another issue on campus is the strong intersection between race and socio-economic status. I believe that there is a stronger tendency to assume that a person of color is on financial aid compared to a caucasian person. Whether this is widespread or not, I cannot definitively say but many of my friends find themselves having to prove themselves twofold: one, that they did not get in because of their race and two, that they did not get in because of their financial information. Race and class are not one and the same, but there is racialization of class on Yale’s campus. People at Yale may not be explicitly prejudiced but they don’t have to be. Even without explicit language and actions the whole atmosphere already makes many of my friends feel an immediate urge to show their effort and drive once they get on campus. Part of this urge is their own drive. That’s fine. Part of this urge is a silent judgement that includes the contribution requirements. That is not fine.
Another issue on campus is the strong intersection between race and socio-economic status. I believe that there is a stronger tendency to assume that a person of color is on financial aid compared to a caucasian person. Whether this is widespread or not, I cannot definitively say but many of my friends find themselves having to prove themselves twofold: one, that they did not get in because of their race and two, that they did not get in because of their financial information. Race and class are not one and the same, but there is racialization of class on Yale’s campus. People at Yale may not be explicitly prejudiced but they don’t have to be. Even without explicit language and actions the whole atmosphere already makes many of my friends feel an immediate urge to show their effort and drive once they get on campus. Part of this urge is their own drive. That’s fine. Part of this urge is a silent judgement that includes the contribution requirements. That is not fine.
