I am an underrepresented minority, a college student, and people treat me like ****

<p>I have a strong feeling that you’re completely paranoid and blowing this entirely out of proportion.</p>

<p>I get that being a URM in college is not easy, but you’ve basically said over and over that everyone you meet treats you condescendingly. The receptionists are condescending, the professors are condescending, the deans are condescending, the counselors are condescending, the students are condescending, etc. Either thousands of people at your college are condescending dbags, or you’re being paranoid. </p>

<p>I’m sure you’re not the only URM student at your school - if other minorities at your college are complaining about this, you might have a legit point. Otherwise, you might be blowing it out of proportion. </p>

<p>Do you go to a small, rural, mostly white college? I go to a large urban school which is pretty ethnically diverse and these types of problems are less frequent here. If this becomes a huge issue, consider transferring to a different college.</p>

<p>
[QUOTE=diontechristmas]

I have a strong feeling that you’re completely paranoid and blowing this entirely out of proportion.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>That’s also why I am asking for opinions on this matter. If I am the only person this happens to, it must be that I am the problem.</p>

<p>Well what type of school is this? Top school? Public? Private? LAC? University?</p>

<p>Details!</p>

<p>What school exactly?</p>

<p>What ethnicity are you?</p>

<p>i have a lot to say but i will only help you after you answer these questions.</p>

<p>The people who say legal_immi is overreacting go to Temple and NYU. Obviously there’s going to be less racism there than other places. I bet legal goes to a “lesser ivy” or some other place people use as their safeties a lot like Duke, and people think they got rejected from their first choice because of affirmative action. You see it all the time on these forums.</p>

<p>Yes, and I went to BU before that, which outside of wealthy international students, was as white as could be. I dont see what that has to do with anything…</p>

<p>diontechristmas and bagelsbagels, I prefer not to reveal the name of the school I go to, but LogicWarrior made a good bet when he said that I go to a “lesser ivy” or some other place people use as safeties. LogicWarrior, is your experience in college similar to mine?</p>

<p>No, but do you go to a top 30 school? Are you a math major? Do you worry that you can’t do anything with a math major?</p>

<p>Yes.
No.
No need to worry since I am not a math major.</p>

<p>I think the fact that you wont give any info shows that you’re paranoid.
I think thats part of the problem.</p>

<p>Bottom Line:</p>

<p>People treat you the way you expect them to treat you.
Reasearch the Pygmalion Effect.</p>

<p>Sounds like pmvd all over again.</p>

<p>I don’t know anyone who fits your description who hasn’t found a professor, a counselor, a dean, or a support staff worker at a center who could help them out. Are you sure that you’re not creating/imagining these things because of your general unhappiness at the school? It’s hard to believe that every member of the school’s staff treats you with a lack of respect. Perhaps what you’re experiencing is a cultural difference between your norms and the accepted norms of either the region of the country you’re going to school at or the norms of the dominate culture at your school?</p>

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<p>Could be.</p>

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<p>Could be, but since you are not in my shoes you will never know if my problem is cognitive or if in fact there is something about my appearance, personality type or ethnic background that upsets people, especially white people.</p>

<p>You’re paranoid. Hundreds of people won’t treat you poorly unless you give them a reason to. All the white folks aren’t in a conspiracy to get you.</p>

<p>I’m interested in hearing stories from underrepresented minorities. If you are white and call me paranoid it’s kind of hard for me to tell if you really mean it or if you are just defending the members of your own race.</p>

<p>Do you honestly believe that an entire group of people are conspiring against you? It seems that your racist viewpoints are what cause you to be offended. I’m sure you’d get along well with Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton.</p>

<p>I have no allegiance to my race, and neither should anyone else.</p>

<p>From the outside, legal, your being so tight-lipped in this thread appears somewhat paranoid.</p>

<p>I mean, first, everyone is condescending, then when you go to the minority help center, you think that they don’t like you and therefore won’t help you. Without any details whatsoever, it does seem like the problem is either manufactured in your mind or based on drastically different cultural expectations. Without knowing your expectations, without knowing their behavior and how it failed to meet your expectations, without knowing anything about you or where you are, it’s hard to believe that the entire institution has turned its back on you, even the place that’s designated to help URMs, simply because you’re a URM.</p>

<p>No, they really mean it. It’s an online forum, nobody sane is going to “defend the members of [their] own race.” As a ORM, I would say there is no way that many people at a top 30 school would treat you condescendingly because you are a URM. If they are, there is a major problem. Besides, if you are at a top 30 school, it likely has thousands of undergrads, and hundreds of URMs. I don’t think there would be a problem if you named your school. If the school really isn’t working out for you, have you considered transferring to another school?</p>

<p>EDIT:</p>

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<p>Quoted for truth. OP, if you think that white people have an allegiance to their race, I’d say it’s more proof you are being paranoid.</p>

<p>If I’m wrong, I’m very sorry, but does this remind anyone else of pmvd? I don’t want to dismiss the problem if it’s genuine, but the “everyone being condescending and looking down on the OP” thing was big with pmvd as well?</p>