By Jimmeaha Mack, staff writer
Author Derrick Brooms headlined a talk about the experiences faced by black males on college campuses as part of the common reading lecture series.
“Black Men Emerging,” an excerpt of Broom’s book “Being Black, Being Male on Campus: Understanding and Confronting Black Male Collegiate Experiences,” was part of the 2018 common reading anthology regarding Resilience.
Brooms, faculty of sociology and Africana studies at the University of Cincinnati as well as recipient of distinguished awards in the field of diversity, was first exposed to this topic during his high school years in the south side of Chicago where he recalls, “the high school that I attended [in] my first year had 334 students, and when we graduated we had 91.”
This had sparked Broom’s initiative in beginning to research why students of color, black males in particular, do not feel safe or do well and why they are problematized on college campuses.
With this research, Brooms began to inform the audience on the injustices brought to campus through newspaper and photography sources. He continued by showing the audience his entire process of research.
Brooms provided the audience with direct quotes and testaments from three black men from different college campuses, that he had interacted with during his research process.
Throughout his time conversing with the men, as well as writing about them in his studies, Brooms mentioned his apprehension in ensuring all the narratives he was including honored the men and the experiences they faced; saying that he wanted to write something that any black man felt they could pick up and see themselves in.
In an attempt to keep his research manageable and not allow voices to become lost in such a wide base of experience, Brooms felt it was important to focus on solely black men rather than reflecting on the experiences of both black males and women.
Susquehanna President Jonathan D. Green opened the lecture with an excerpt of an address given by Fredrick Douglass, and ended by asking the audience: “What will privilege do to change the rules of the game? Who will have the moral courage to hold hands with those who say enough? Until that number is truly great, resilience will remain the foundation of hope in progress.”
Brooms hopes that his excerpt in the anthology, lecture and novel in its entirety, furthers the conversation on not just the challenges that black males are facing and the things that are happening to them, but finding the steps to help them, and all students in general, succeed and prosper in college and post-grad.
Looking towards the future, Brooms would like to see a multitude of opportunities, such as having the ability to pursue an education. Having not only choice in institution but the ability for financial aid, support and exposure to new experiences throughout, honoring the skills and assets black men have, and including more diversity into the faculty since “all students are better off when we have more diversity in faculty and staff” is part of Brooms’ vision.
The common reading lecture series will be continued by poet Martín Espada, writer of “En La Calle San Sebastián”, at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 1 in Degenstein Theatre.
