Jakobi Williams

The Visible Man: Moving Beyond Gender Wars to Build Diversity
By Jakobi Williams, Ph.D. Candidate, UCLA

As an African American male doctoral candidate, I am supposed to be one of the men "missing" from higher education. According to a slate of recent articles hyped by the media, the cause of the dwindling numbers of men in higher education is the success of women. Yet the lowered percentages of men on college campuses--specifically men of color--is a far more complex question than a zero-sum game in which women's success hinders men's success. The recent article, "The New Gender Divide" in the Chronicle of Higher Education (Wilson, 2007), contends that women's academic success may be the major reason why the enrollment numbers for men are lower, but barely mentions race. My university, UCLA, once heralded as one of the most diverse campuses in the nation, has experienced a major drop in African American enrollment since the repeal of affirmation action in 1996. Twenty years ago, black students were nearly 10 percent of the incoming class, whereas this year only 96 African Americas were admitted out of over 4,000. As both a student and instructor, I'm usually the only African American male in the classroom. Being African American at a predominately white institution can be isolating due to the limited presence of African American peers and colleagues. I know first-hand many of the challenges facing black men in higher education. However, women's achievement is not one of these concerns. Diversity is crucial to building strong and vibrant intellectual communities, and the increase in women's enrollment numbers only adds to this environment. Rather than pitting men against women, universities should focus on more tangible issues such as mentoring and attempt to engage the numerous documented forces that really affect African American male enrollment and retention rates.

Although African American women outnumber African American men by about 2 to1 on college campuses, the disparity is in no way a result of the increase in the educational success of African American women. Just take a look at the historical picture. Every February, we celebrate the accomplishments of prominent African Americans for Black History Month, overwhelmingly focused on the achievements of men. We easily forget that women have also been shut out from power and African American women bear a double burden of racial and gender prejudice. It wasn't long ago (1960s) that women began to have access in significant numbers to advanced education, which had long been defined as a men's sphere. Along with people of color, women helped to bring real diversity to college campuses. African American women have fought valiantly for inclusion in all facets of higher education and academia and their successes and accomplishments have increased over time. These achievements are good for both African Americans and for women and should be viewed as such. To imply that their accomplishments contribute to denying men of color access to education is not only gender insensitive but also steers the debate away from the real issues facing universities.

There are myriad factors that contribute to the lack of African American male presence on college campuses. These include institutionalized racism, the injustices of the judicial system, poverty, gang activity, the prison industrial complex, military service, the repeal of affirmative action programs, college admissions procedures, and many others. I will not attempt to address these factors in this article, but it is important to note that African American male enrollment and retention rates are closely tied with other social issues. There is a consensus among scholars that these crises affect African American men more than they do African American women. Is this point enough to imply that women should have some accountability for male's low enrollment?

Whether any of these issues helped African American women advance educationally above their male counterparts is debatable, for many of these factors serve as barriers for black women as well. Nevertheless, these social issues are the key reasons why many African American males have been denied access to educational advancements, not the increase in the educational success of African American women and certainly not feminism. The lack of black male representation on campus is a tangible concern and black women are some of the leaders who attempt to tackle the predicament.

As a result of the dearth of African American male mentorship (both at the student and faculty level) women have often filled these roles. Although there are usually black male mentors on campuses, there are not nearly enough to provide guidance to all black male students. Brenda Stevenson, an accomplished African American historian, is my academic advisor and her tutelage, guidance, patience and support has been crucial to my growth and development as a scholar. Moreover, a significant number of students who have sought my direction as a mentor are women.

I believe that viewing the dilemma of the lack of African American men in higher education as merely a gender issue is problematic and insufficient. Rather, I see the enrollment disparities on college campuses in terms of race and class with intersections of gender. The aforementioned issues are essential to building a healthier, more productive society and will begin to close the gender gap on college campuses.

Despite women's increased enrollment, women of all races are still underrepresented in the highest levels of academia. I surely understand the plight of black men in academia, but there are more important factors other than women's achievement that affect African American enrollment and retention rates. My hurdles as a black male doctoral candidate are not caused by women's achievement, but by a lack of financial support for underrepresented students in higher education. Pitting groups against one another weakens the academic environment. Diversity strengthens intellectual communities, and we need to mentor and engage all students to foster an ideal academic setting.

Wilson, R. 2007. The new gender divide: Data show that more women than men now enroll in college, but is there really a 'boy crisis'? The Chronicle of Higher Education 53 (21): A36.