Conversations for the Mathematics Community

I wanted to share my response to Assignment 2, where I read  "Are You Supporting White Supremacy?" by Reshmi Dutt-Ballerstadt
This article included a checklist, that really made me think about some of the ways that just continuing every day activities, and not 'making waves', contributes to a culture that excludes others. One of the major themes of the piece is how the status quo is itself supporting white supremacy.

One point in particular that stuck out to me was:

• When you are asked to nominate your students and faculty colleagues for awards or leadership positions, your first instinct is to nominate those that are "stellar" (mostly men) and obviously "white." It doesn't occur to you that you are implicitly supporting a logic of meritocracy that is built on this racist assumption that everyone has had the same access and opportunities.

This has been something I have witnessed from colleagues firsthand, and struggled with in my own recommendations for department awards for majors.  The idea of math as meritocarcy is so internalized, it can be hard to shake.  But as the author states, it ignores the very different opportunities and encouragement that students receive as a result of their background.

While the piece was about higher education in general, many aspects are especially relevant for math.  It empahsizes that power exists with faculty and administration, and that if we really want to change the culture in our field, it is on those of us in those roles to use that power.  This means not just agreeing and empathizing with colleagues and students from under-represented groups, but taking action to support them and promote inclusion in general; in department meetings, in the classroom, in who receives those awards described above, and more.

Ben

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Benjamin Gaines
Assistant Professor of Mathematics
Iona College
New Rochelle, NY
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I also chose to read the article Are You Supporting White Supremacy?   That's a great title to get one's attention!  My response is attached.

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Richard Cleary
Wellesley MA
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I read this article as well, since it was one I had not seen before. This item from the checklist stands out for me:

You work in a position of power in a predominantly white institution, and while you claim to be working for social justice, you do nothing to change the white supremacist power structures within your departments, committees and institutional decision-making process. 

I am working hard on recognizing white supremacist behaviors and norms at all levels in my institution (including in my teaching), and feel I still have a long way to go before these become more obvious to me. I would like to not have to rely on BIPOC colleagues to call these out, yet since I am less directly affected (or perhaps even privileged) by these practices, it is easier to just not notice. This is one of my growth edges, to continually be on alert to notice and then also call out white supremacy in action. 

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Deborah Olander
Instructor
Phillips Academy
Andover MA
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I opted to read the Folded Map Project about connecting people from the North and South Sides of Chicago who shared the 'same' address.  I have attached some of my thoughts as they pertain to power and opting in vs. opting out.

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Lori Alvin
Furman University
Greenville SC
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-29-2020 22:07
From: Deborah Olander
Subject: Assignment 2

I read this article as well, since it was one I had not seen before. This item from the checklist stands out for me:

You work in a position of power in a predominantly white institution, and while you claim to be working for social justice, you do nothing to change the white supremacist power structures within your departments, committees and institutional decision-making process. 

I am working hard on recognizing white supremacist behaviors and norms at all levels in my institution (including in my teaching), and feel I still have a long way to go before these become more obvious to me. I would like to not have to rely on BIPOC colleagues to call these out, yet since I am less directly affected (or perhaps even privileged) by these practices, it is easier to just not notice. This is one of my growth edges, to continually be on alert to notice and then also call out white supremacy in action. 

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Deborah Olander
Instructor
Phillips Academy
Andover MA
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I watched A Class Divided – Jane Elliot (because it was recommended).

As a third-grade teacher in Iowa after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, Jane Elliot introduced a temporary and novel form of ideological oppression in her classroom. On the first day she proclaimed that all blue-eyed students were superior to brown-eyed students. She then re-enforced the oppression institutionally by creating rules for each group to follow that favored the superior group. Even though the designation was arbitrary and the children were previously friends, teasing, fights, and poor treatment ensued. The following day she reversed the ordering and proclaimed brown-eyed students to be superior to blue-eyed students, with much the same outcome.   

The Frontline episode was very difficult to watch. The activity helped participants develop lasting empathy for minoritized groups by experiencing aggression and discrimination firsthand, but I cannot imagine it would be considered ethical by a modern institutional review board.  

There seems to be a universal desire to flex one's perceived superiority and control others.  The interpersonal oppression that resulted was immediate; I could attribute it to kids following the lead of their teacher but adults participating in similar trainings behaved the same. A single person, Jane Elliot (as teacher and workshop facilitator) controlled the power. She made the designations and the rules, and she enlisted the assistance of "superior" people to maintain her power.

I found it interesting, that skills tests administered during Jane Elliot's classroom activity showed evidence of stereotype boost for students with the superior characteristic and stereotype threat for students with the inferior characteristic. And when the characteristics changed from interior to superior the following day, threats became boosts and vice versa.

Finally, Jane Elliot's activities were of finite duration (a few hours to a few days). Several of the "inferior" participants felt defeated and unjustly treated right away. They chose to opt-out rather than engage and be made to feel even worse. So after a very short time, people are exhibiting internalized oppression. Imagine if they had to deal with poor treatment their entire life with no end in sight. 

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Jennifer Quinn
MAA President Elect
Pacific Northwest Section

blog: mathinthetimeofcorona.wordpress.com
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-30-2020 14:01
From: Lori Alvin
Subject: Assignment 2

I opted to read the Folded Map Project about connecting people from the North and South Sides of Chicago who shared the 'same' address.  I have attached some of my thoughts as they pertain to power and opting in vs. opting out.

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Lori Alvin
Furman University
Greenville SC
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-29-2020 22:07
From: Deborah Olander
Subject: Assignment 2

I read this article as well, since it was one I had not seen before. This item from the checklist stands out for me:

You work in a position of power in a predominantly white institution, and while you claim to be working for social justice, you do nothing to change the white supremacist power structures within your departments, committees and institutional decision-making process. 

I am working hard on recognizing white supremacist behaviors and norms at all levels in my institution (including in my teaching), and feel I still have a long way to go before these become more obvious to me. I would like to not have to rely on BIPOC colleagues to call these out, yet since I am less directly affected (or perhaps even privileged) by these practices, it is easier to just not notice. This is one of my growth edges, to continually be on alert to notice and then also call out white supremacy in action. 

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Deborah Olander
Instructor
Phillips Academy
Andover MA

I also read "Are You Supporting White Supremacy?"  Like Ben, the checklist made me think about the ways my silence on certain issues upholds the status quo.  I've witnessed plenty of things that aren't okay and pushing back on them hasn't always gone well.  In the past, I've internally let myself off the hook since I'm junior faculty and have low rank within our power structure, but I've grown increasingly uncomfortable with this.  Instead of making big waves, I've tried to do the work more quietly or with smaller groups of people with higher status.  (For example, I was able to help initiate some positive changes in how we conduct our faculty searches at the departmental level.) And while this strategy has accomplished things, I can't help but think of Desmond Tutu's quote about being neutral in situations of injustice when I remain quiet.  I think I/we sometimes opt out of engaging in these conversations in the moment for fear of rocking the boat but by doing so we are being complicit in upholding the systematic problems within our departments/colleges/universities or other spaces.  

The item in the checklist that hit me the hardest was "When your colleagues and students claim that they experienced microaggressions, your response is 'I am so sorry. This is unbelievable!'"  While I don't have a memory of exactly that happening, it makes me wonder the ways in which I have failed to support some of the graduate students I have mentored within my department. I typically lend a sympathetic ear and try to help them navigate the situation rather than using my power to address how the situation came to be in the first place. (Showing how to get around the obstacle rather than working to remove the obstacle, thus putting additional burden on the student.).  I hadn't directly thought of it this way before reading the article.    

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Sarah Bockting-Conrad
Depaul University
Chicago IL
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I also read Are you Supporting White Supremacy.  The title was just too catchy to not read it.

One this that stood out to me was that I don't know the work of Claudia Rankine, Frantz Fanon, Aimé Césaire or Teju Cole, but I do know (and have read) Ta-Nehisi Coates.  I understand her point is that allies should support their fellow faculty members and students, and not just turn out for celebrity events.  That said, honestly, I can't tell if the author is expressing a negative option about Coates or just using him as an example.

Another point that stood out to me was when she said "You benefit so much from the system that you have decided to stay out of all of this 'identity politics'".  I'm not sure about the motivation, but it's certainly easy in math and more generally in STEM to not engage in "identity politics" since it is supposedly "outside of our fields".  But, I think if we are learning anything from this workshop, it is that math is not neutral and we cannot ignore these issues.

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Rebecca Conley
Saint Peter's University
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-31-2020 14:31
From: Sarah Bockting-Conrad
Subject: Assignment 2

I also read "Are You Supporting White Supremacy?"  Like Ben, the checklist made me think about the ways my silence on certain issues upholds the status quo.  I've witnessed plenty of things that aren't okay and pushing back on them hasn't always gone well.  In the past, I've internally let myself off the hook since I'm junior faculty and have low rank within our power structure, but I've grown increasingly uncomfortable with this.  Instead of making big waves, I've tried to do the work more quietly or with smaller groups of people with higher status.  (For example, I was able to help initiate some positive changes in how we conduct our faculty searches at the departmental level.) And while this strategy has accomplished things, I can't help but think of Desmond Tutu's quote about being neutral in situations of injustice when I remain quiet.  I think I/we sometimes opt out of engaging in these conversations in the moment for fear of rocking the boat but by doing so we are being complicit in upholding the systematic problems within our departments/colleges/universities or other spaces.  

The item in the checklist that hit me the hardest was "When your colleagues and students claim that they experienced microaggressions, your response is 'I am so sorry. This is unbelievable!'"  While I don't have a memory of exactly that happening, it makes me wonder the ways in which I have failed to support some of the graduate students I have mentored within my department. I typically lend a sympathetic ear and try to help them navigate the situation rather than using my power to address how the situation came to be in the first place. (Showing how to get around the obstacle rather than working to remove the obstacle, thus putting additional burden on the student.).  I hadn't directly thought of it this way before reading the article.    

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Sarah Bockting-Conrad
Depaul University
Chicago IL
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Dear all,
thanks so much for your thoughful reactions to this assignment! Glad to see this has sparked (or helped you continue) some important reflections about our place in math, academia, society. If others had completed it and wouldn't mind sharing their own answers, please go ahead -- and feel free to go voer the other articles throughout the term!
Rosalie

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Rosalie Bélanger-Rioux, PhD (she/her/hers)
Faculty Lecturer, McGill University
Conversations for the Mathematics Community
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