In recent opinion article posted in the Sac State Hornet titled “Ethnic Studies Courses Make Some Students Uncomfortable”, student Kaitlin Sansenbach questions the necessity and intentions of the Ethnic Studies GE requirement at Sac State. In doing so, she perfectly exemplifies the need for requiring such courses. Sansenbach’s argues that Ethnic Studies courses are intended “to examine significant aspects of different cultures…and other races and help curb a “well-rounded” interpretation of how other people live in the United States.” As Sansenbach states that Ethnic Studies courses at Sac State are focused on Asian Americans, Black Americans, Native Americans, and “Mexican Americans”*, the implied “other” or “different” people are non-White people.

This “othering” of non-White cultures and racial realities is exactly one of the reasons why Ethnic Studies courses are still a real necessity in educational institutions, including at Sac State. Sansenbach’s language exemplifies the normalization of “Whiteness” in contrast to various non-White or non-European cultures, ethnicities, and races. This is why Sansenbach and many other students claim that, “there is not a class specifically outlining the importance of white people’s culture and contribution to America”. They are unable to see that the vast majority of material covered in U.S. history, literature, theology, civilization, etc. courses is about White Americans and Europeans. Because “White” is the default basis of courses, we easily become desensitized to this trend and unable to label it as such. 

 In all of my 15+ years in the California public education system, I have never learned about Black Americans except in reference to the civil war or the civil rights movement. I have only learned about Asian-Americans in reference to the Chinese gold rush miners, railroad workers, or Japanese internment camps. I learned nothing of Latinos, only of Spanish conquerors. And I only learned of Native Americans in reference to the peaceful Thanksgiving myth and a brief mention of large numbers of them dying from diseases. This of course is outside of my Ethnic Studies courses at Sac State. And I would argue that most students have a similar experience to me.

 I ask Sansenbach and others who share her views how many White political figures they could name, and then how many Black, or Asian, or Latino, or Native American political figures they could name. I would assume if they went through the U.S. educational system, they wouldn’t be able to name many People of Color. And why is that? That’s an important question to ask ourselves.

But besides the fact that Sansenbach’s article is problematic in its presentation of concepts of race and its claim that Whites are the minority in the U.S. and at Sac State*, her claim that Ethnic Studies courses are intended “to examine significant aspects of different [marginalized] cultures…and other races[ People of Color] and help curb a “well-rounded” interpretation of how other people[People of Color] live in the United States” is in part very true.

Ethnic Studies courses are in response to what the late Ronald Takaki, called the “Master Narrative”. This narrative has all too successfully painted White and European Americans as the creators and shapers of U.S. history and contemporary life while Black, Asian, Native, Latino and other non-White Americans have been largely left out. Looking at almost any U.S. history textbook would support this argument. Furthermore, Ethnic Studies courses seek to help students empower themselves to challenge inequalities on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, class, and any other social identity. This all of course cannot be done without a healthy dose of critical thinking. And isn’t that what we’re partly in college for? To learn how to look more critically at our society and the decisions we make?

Yes, realizing or being told that we have some privileges over others is not always comfortable; it requires us to reassess our perspectives and change our actions. This includes subtle (and not so subtle) prejudices and discriminatory behaviors that have been normalized in our communities and broader U.S. society. But without being “uncomfortable” how has anyone ever gained new perspectives and grown? What do we risk by not acknowledging the struggles others are subjected to that we are not? And what does anyone gain by us not acknowledging them, by sending a message that the realities of some are not important enough to mention?

 The intent of Ethnic Studies is not to paint race as “the singular issue” as Sansenbach claims, but to show that race is still, for many, their biggest social barrier. Furthermore, the field seeks to analyze the ways we are socialized to view race and ethnicity. This alone in no way discounts other oppressions like classism, sexism, homophobia, etc.

Ethnic Studies courses allow us to gain better understanding of those histories and struggles that are not often told in the dominant narrative. They allow us as Americans to take steps towards realizing “liberty and justice for all”. As the French philosopher Simone de Beauvoir said in The Ethics of Ambiguity (1947), “the existence of others as a freedom defines my situation and is even the condition of my own freedom.” Without courses like those offered in Ethnic Studies, how can we ever have a comprehensive understanding of the concepts of freedom that we cherish in our country? These courses help us bring in the experiences of large portions of our society to the discourse. Ethnic Studies courses broaden our scope of American life. And yes that’s not always an easy or “comfortable” process, but it’s a vital expansion.

**The word “Latino-American”, rather than “Mexican-American”, would be better as it is understood as a racial category in the same line of Asian, Black, and Native American. Mexican is defined as an ethnic category.

**CSUS Fall 2012 racial demographics: Asian 21 percent Black 6 percent Latino 19 percent Native American 1percent White 40 percent http://www.csus.edu/oir/Data%20Center.html

-Aja Lenae Johnson,20, 

Ethnic Studies Major