Exposing the Myth: HBCUs and the Real World (422 hits)
Thousands of students are preparing to attend historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in August. But some of those students are on the receiving end of blows of ire from friends and family for choosing an HBCU.
The loudest critique — HBCUs are not representative of the real world.
As someone who attended an HBCU (Florida A&M University) for my undergraduate studies, I have heard this claim so many times it stopped upsetting me. But when I listened to one of my family members make this assertion to our most recent high school graduate who will attend an HBCU in the fall, my passion for setting the record straight resurfaced.
There are concerns a parent can raise in sending their child to an HBCU, just as that parent can develop concerns about any college or university in this nation. But the idea that HBCUs do not represent the real world should not cause alarm. It is invalid, based on a few faulty (but seemingly logical) premises.
The concept starts with the obvious observation that African-Americans live in a majority White country. Since HBCUs are majority Black, they do not correspond to this real, majority White world, the argument climaxes. When students attend HBCUs, when they enter these majority Black spaces, they instead are enrolled in fictitious, racial dream worlds that do not match reality. Therefore, African-American students are better served learning how to operate in this majority White nation by attending a majority White college or university.
