by Jeffrey Stanley

“I’m color blind. Race and culture are irrelevant to me. I don’t see them when I look at you,” said the white teacher to his black colleague. “I just see you.”

“But my color and culture are a part of me,” replied the offended teacher. “They shouldn’t be overlooked, they should be recognized and appreciated!”

This anecdote was retold by Brooklyn Friends teacher Valarie Alston as one example of an insight she had gained by participating in the People of Color Conference (PoCC) held in Dallas, Texas Dec. 1-3. Sponsored by the National Association of Independent Schools, this year’s joint PoCC and Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC) attracted 2,700 students and adults who heard from experts on all aspects of diversity, multiculturalism, and equity and justice in the independent school world today. Valerie joined BFS teachers Laurice Hwang, Kerri Richardson and Tony Tanel, and four students—Cristina Urena ’06, Uribe, Jamal Davis ’07, Laurice Fox ’08, and Imani Hargett ’08—at the annual event.

The anecdote about the white and black teachers sparked a huge debate in one of the conference workshops Valarie attended. “That story was very useful to me as a health teacher,” she recalled, noting that the workshop, “Teaching Global Culture in the Age of HIV,” gave participants strategies on how to teach students that there is value in all cultures. “It helped me think of ways to build global awareness in the students, to remind them that increasingly we’re becoming one culture in some ways.” In addition to teaching health to middle and upper school students, Valarie works with juniors and seniors as the registrar for the College Office.

“SDLC is a leadership conference where students of color can gather for confidence building,” explained Valarie. “PoCC encourages networking and training among the adults.” Valarie attended workshops that focused on health, class, and diversity. In addition to the Global Culture workshop she was also particularly moved by a workshop called “Invisible No More—Building Confidence in Young Men of Color.” Presented by Georgetown Day School, this workshop focused on the school’s decision to allow students to form race-based affinity groups, an issue with which Brooklyn Friends has struggled in the past. “This hit home as I’m a single mom of a 15-year-old son,” said Valarie. “Kadeem is a student at LaGuardia High School in Manhattan. He often voices his concerns and frustration at feeling invisible.” The Young Men of Color affinity group at Georgetown Day view academics as a priority and members are encouraged to participate in larger school programs as leaders while building relationships with other groups at the school.

The keynote speaker at the conference was none other than James Earl Jones, who spoke about the subtle differences between culture and diversity. “Each person’s culture is a celebration of his or her uniqueness. It’s how we view our world,” recalled Valarie, paraphrasing the esteemed actor’s talk. “For instance, a teacher is responsible for students of varying cultures, but in many schools we try to teach a child through the dominant culture. Therefore the students can’t learn unless they understand it through someone else’s culture. It’s like having your left foot in one canoe, the right foot in another canoe and trying to balance yourself without falling. The student may become discouraged, give up and fail or become angry and bitter and totally deny his or her culture.”

Valarie found that many of her adult peers at the four-day event hold advanced degrees from Ivy League institutions and had worked hard to obtain the privilege of being called “doctor,” yet they still feel they aren’t as respected at work as their white colleagues. “I could hear the frustration in their voices as they spoke about the pain of being singled out because of their culture, race or ethnicity. At the PoCC these incredibly intelligent, gifted and unique individuals had allies. They had people who understood their struggle. They had a family.”

Although Valarie previously had received no formal training in helping her students deal with diversity issues, in many students’ eyes she is already one of Brooklyn Friends’ resident experts. She is an African-American born in Liberia, Africa; she is a woman: and she uses a hearing aid. These three traits make her particularly “diverse” wherever she goes, whether she likes it or not. She frankly recounted some of the ways people use these visual cues to make assumptions about her. “In the white community I’m seen first as a black woman. In the black community they see me first as a deaf woman. I’m either black or hard of hearing. In our society you have to pick and choose who you are.”

How does she see herself? “If I’m in a crowd I will gravitate toward the people who are hard of hearing regardless of their race because of the language barrier. If I see signing I breathe a sigh of relief.”

Valarie was particularly impressed at the conference when guest speaker Dr. Terry Tafoya, a Native American psychiatrist, storyteller and educator who used sign language in his address. He spoke about the difference between English speakers and English users. “A lot of people of color speak English but they are not English users,” said Valarie. “I use the English language to communicate; however, I am not an English speaker. My English tone and rhythm are totally different from the white culture. It’s not right or wrong; we just have to accept that part about each other. But sometimes a student of color can internalize that and think there’s something wrong with him or her.”

Valarie feels she gained much from PoCC. She’s encouraged that Brooklyn Friends School supports sending students and faculty to the national conferences every year and that the school emphasizes appreciation and respect for others at all levels of school life. She also hopes to see the PoCC grow and embrace people who are differently abled. While at times she found the conference to be a bit too “cerebral,” Valarie was thrilled to have the opportunity to spread her wings beyond Brooklyn and BFS and to bring new ideas and actions back to our school community.