Claudia
HEAD-ROYCE SCHOOL
12TH GRADE
1.How do you identify? Have you always felt comfortable in this identity? Interpret this question however you'd like, whether it be your gender, ethnicity or nationality.
I identify as Chinese American. For most of my life I have felt comfortable with this identity, though there have been moments which I have felt uncomfortable with my own ethnicity or wished that I had a different ethnicity. For example, when Chinese people surround me I feel more American and when American (white) people surround me I feel more Chinese.
2. Talk about the environments and communities you've been a part of and the ways in which they've affected the formation of your identity. Tell your story!
I am a lifer at Head-Royce, so I honestly don’t remember there being any issues over my racial identity when I first came to the school. Attending school in Oakland, I also understand that the ethnic, religious, and gender identities that make up the Head-Royce community are not reflective of where we live/ go to school. Although our community is not quite as diverse as the city that we are in, the Head-Royce high school community has immense education on the topic. So while I am not physically integrated with people of every gender, religion, and ethnicity, I do understand my own identity better/ understand myself better from Head-Royce’s open and frequent identity discussions.
As a current senior, I don’t feel like I have to display an identity that is untrue to my own because in my high school years I have learned so much about my own identity and how every facet is good as it is. In the past, I have hidden parts of my identity and resultantly felt guilt or dishonesty to myself. These realizations and an accepting surrounding community have led me to act truthfully to my identity.
As a Chinese American, I don’t feel like a huge minority at this school. With the stereotype that “Asians are smart” in mind, sometimes I feel like I have to work harder to reach that stereotype, but that is pressure that I put on myself, and most of the time I work hard for reasons other than to achieve this stereotype.
3.Where do you feel most safe as a racial minority at Head-Royce?
I feel most safe with people who are welcoming, good listeners, and nonjudgmental. These people are my closest friends, teachers, and coaches.
4. In what moments, if any, have you felt hyper-aware of your race in attending an independent school?
While at times I am a minority, as a Chinese American, in the classroom, there are often at least a few other Chinese Americans in every class of mine. Attending a class with at least a few other Chinese Americans, I feel like this is the norm, and I would be more surprised/ hyper-aware if half of my class or more were Chinese American (ie: I am more hyper-aware of my own race when there are more Chinese American students in my class than when there are less). For example, my Chinese class is made up of about 85% Chinese American students, and I am more hyper-aware of the ethnicities that make up that class than any of my other classes. Though it begs me to ask the question of why do (for the most part) only Chinese students take Chinese class?
5. Do you feel as though individuals of your race are properly represented at HRS. Whether this is through the literature that we read, members of our staff etc...
Instinctively, I feel like Chinese Americans are well represented at the school. However, that is with the notion in mind that 20-25% translates to “well-represented” and given a second thought, those are pretty small percentages. When I think of the many diversity issues that Head-Royce faces, I think of the Chinese American representation issue as very low on that list simply because there are so many other races that are not well represented (and some that are not even represented).
6. If you came back to visit HRS in 10 years, what would you have liked to see changed?
I would like to see a community that is more ethnically diverse. Currently, Caucasian, Chinese American, and Indian American, are races that are most apparent to me at the school. I would love to see more Hispanic and African American teachers and students. While there are many factors as to why a family would not send its children to Head-Royce, one of them should not be that the student does not want to attend because of the negative implications of being an ethnic minority. Head-Royce needs to put more effort into the issue of ethnic diversity at the school, which will make ethnic minorities feel more comfortable on campus (as well as making them less of minorities). An example to work towards this goal would be to hire more teachers of ethnic minorities.
7. Tell me about a time when you felt proud of your race!
One of the most common stereotypes that Chinese Americans face is that “Chinese people are smart and good at math.” While I wholly disagree with the fact that a person may make an assumption based on stereotypes, personally, this stereotype does not bother me because I want others to believe that I work hard/ take me seriously/ truly am good at math. This stereotype stems from the Chinese culture of hard work (especially directed towards math) and I am proud to come from a culture that values hard work. I realize that this stereotype is troublesome to many: Chinese Americans who are pressured to live up to the stereotype, Chinese Americans who believe that they are not worthy of the stereotype, but (again, personally) I am at peace with the stereotype and am proud to come from a culture that is not inherently good at math, but has worked long and hard to achieve a goal. (I realize that I just included a bunch of generalizations-and I do not agree with generalizations-but I hope the gist is there)