OPINION: Diversity efforts must recognize multiracial students

Last week, USC hosted its third annual Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Week, featuring a series of lectures and discussions about marginalized groups and inclusion on campus. Topics included working with disabilities, encouraging LGBTQ+ rights and identifying as black or Latinx in academic spaces. But while there were many of these workshops to choose from, the programming lacked discussion centered on multiracial spaces in academia.

The Pew Research Center reported in 2013 that Americans younger than 18 made up only 23 percent of the total population. Yet, they made up 46 percent of those identifying as multiracial. While the total number of multiracial Americans account for just 3 percent of the total population, the increase in young people classified as such signals that those working to improve inclusion efforts on college campuses should think more about how to serve these students moving forward.

Questions of where multiracial students fit in at a university begin even before they step onto campus. The Common Application, used by USC and other schools, asks applicants to identify which racial group they belong to. With diversity as a major talking point for elite schools, prospective students of mixed race may feel pressured to check the box for whichever part of their racial identity they feel will help make their case for admission. A biracial student may only declare their minority identity throughout the application process with the hope of a better chance at admission through affirmative action.

Even something as simple as ignoring one or more parts of a student’s identity to bolster their chances with admission sets a harmful precedent. If unaddressed, this oversight would tell these individuals that only part of who they are is valuable in college spaces. This would make them uncomfortable with questions about their race later on or force them to continue overlooking their full racial identity in  attempt to fit in or “pass.”

On campus, there is a variety of clubs for students of different racial and ethnic backgrounds to give them a sense of community. Groups like El Centro Chicano and the Black Student Assembly provide students with resources to engage with their racial identity in academic contexts and find people with similar experiences to help them adjust to college. Most of these groups are open to those beyond their target demographic, but ultimately, they serve students from a specific racial and ethnic background.

Students of mixed race descent can look for community through these organizations, but their experiences are different than those of someone identifying as only one race. This can lead to “imposter syndrome” and students feeling they “didn’t count” enough to belong with that group because of their mixed background. Students who are white-passing, who don’t look like they belong to a minority group, may feel their appearance disqualifies them from belonging to one of these groups. Those who look more like one race over another may feel pressured to choose organizations that prioritize that particular identity.

MixedSC is a student organization that addresses this. According to its Facebook page, MixedSC is a  “welcoming social community created to connect multiracial students at USC.” Organizations like this, which aim to give students a place to explore what it means to be mixed, can provide a sense of belonging on campus. Having a space where students can engage with their full racial identity is beneficial in helping them understand where their experiences fit in.

However, resources for mixed students should not stop at a single student organization. USC needs to reach out to multiracial students and let them know they are as valued as anyone else on campus. Lectures and discussions on what it means to be multiracial should be held alongside those for students in a single minority group. Creating welcome events for mixed students to meet others similar to them during orientation can help them find a place of belonging early on, so they won’t feel pressured throughout their time at USC to pick an identity.

USC Admission should take a firm stance that identifying as more than one race on an application is just as important in creating a diverse student body as having more students from a single minority group, so it is not ingrained in them before arriving that they have to mask part of their identity.