<p>I was wondering how Wesleyan does in the diversity department. I already know that they are very accepting to different types of people in regards to sexual orientation and things of that nature, but I don't know how they are in regards to racial diversity. Is there a substantial amount of minority students and if there are, is there any racial tension? For instance, I wouldn't mind if there was a small population of African Americans, but if there was discrimination, then I would start to be weary.</p>
<p>This year marks the first entering class at Wesleyan to matriculate under the newly revised federal guidelines for collecting statistical data on race:</p>
<p>The results are interesting in that by merely asking matriculants to choose between self-identifying as either African-American or “multi-racial” – but, not both – the percentage of the Class of 2014 that are black non-Hispanics (or who don’t live abroad) declines from 9% to 6.8% or a decline of 25%.</p>
<p>In any event, if you take a look at the above referenced Common Data Sets for Wesleyan you will see a a very diverse student body for such a small college. Are there tensions? There is an ongoing “conversation” (if I may put it mildly) between conservatives and liberals regarding affirmative action that has been going on, at Wesleyan, for the better part of the past half-century. </p>
<p>Wesleyan was a trailblazer in establishing and refining diversity policies on the undergraduate level and earned the sobriquet, “diversity university” very early on and largely because of its attempts to recruit African-American as well as Hispanic, inner-city kids to its classic New England campus. It was controversial from almost the moment it got off the ground and, to some degree, it still is.</p>
<p>Even though the black non-Hispanic population has declined, are the racial interactions amicable? For instance, I know that Tufts has a substantial population of black non-Hispanic students, but I’ve heard that they tend to self-segregate. Is this the case at Wes?</p>
<p>Well, let’s be clear. The students haven’t disappeared, it’s just when forced to choose between only one identity they may choose to check one box on a questionnaire over another. They are being counted differently. </p>
<p>As for racial interactions, they are amicable. There is some self-segregation; people are always going to interact the most with people with whom they feel most comfortable and, to some extent, that means the most familiar. OTOH, there are lots of places and activities where race seems to be a non-factor, like on the football team: [Roster</a>, Football, Athletics - Wesleyan University](<a href=“Wesleyan University - Official Athletics Website”>Wesleyan University - Official Athletics Website). </p>
<p>And, people seem to arrive at Wesleyan with extensive foreknowledge of hip-hop and rap, favorite films and books. It all serves as a kind of <em>lingua franca</em> for people from even the most different backgrounds, further evidence that what was once considered separate African-American culture has gradually become part of a generalized American youth culture. I’m sure it exists at Tufts too, but, my sense is that Wesleyan’s small size tends to make any person or activity just a little more accessible to everyone else.</p>