The Student News Site of Colorado State University

The Rocky Mountain Collegian

The Student News Site of Colorado State University

The Rocky Mountain Collegian

The Student News Site of Colorado State University

The Rocky Mountain Collegian

Print Edition
Letter to the editor submissions
Have a strong opinion about something happening on campus or in Fort Collins? Want to respond to an article written on The Collegian? Write a Letter to the Editor by following the guidelines here.
Follow Us on Twitter
Crypto Exchange Listing: Types of Exchanges and Compliance Requirements
March 25, 2024

The crypto industry continues to evolve, fueled by the increasing institutional adoption of crypto. Today, numerous companies are entering the...

Leibee: It’s not inclusive if it’s not intersectional

Editor’s Note: All opinion section content reflects the views of the individual author only and does not represent a stance taken by The Collegian or its editorial board.

Colorado State University has pushed inclusivity for as long as most of us can remember. From putting the principles of community on posters to handing out “No Place 4 Hate” pins, CSU has never failed to remind students of its intentions.

Ad

It is not news, however, that CSU has seen multiple incidents of racial discrimination recently. We saw it with the students sharing stories of discrimination on social media as well as with the hate speech found in Warner College just last month.

With CSUnity coming up, it is important not to overlook the lack of intersectional inclusion on this campus. It is one thing to intend to be inclusive of everyone, but it is another thing to actually show that.

People on this campus will gladly speak up about feminist and LGBTQ issues because they affect white people. Once it becomes an issue of race, such as the multiple incidents of discrimination, students and organizations often suddenly forget they have a voice.

You don’t get to call yourself inclusive if you pick and choose the genders, races, ethnicities and sexualities that you are supportive of.

This lack of intersectionality when fighting for inclusivity might come from the trend of victim-hood in our society, especially among white people. Psychology Today says that, “In our culture of victim-hood, victims can be excused for victimizing others, taking away the rights, freedoms and autonomy of others, in service to their victimization.” 

“People on this campus will gladly speak up about feminist and LGBTQ issues because they affect white people.”

We see this when people jump to correct others when they mis-gender someone or say “you guys,” rather than “ya’ll” but remain quiet when an obvious act of racism occurs. It’s not that mis-gendering should go unnoticed, but standing up for issues facing one group of people is less impactful when you are not standing up for all people.

It is easy to excuse racism when it comes from someone who has been the victim of something themselves, whether that be sexism, ableism, homophobia, mis-gendering etc. 

However, that should no longer be an excuse. Although this campus has a predominately white population, that doesn’t mean we should only focus on the issues that affect the dominant population. If we can ask people to respect the million different identities that white people have, we should be able to ask them to respect people of color.

As a white, cisgender, heterosexual female, I recognize my privilege on this campus, but I also recognize that because of my identities, I have an opportunity to say the things that are not often listened to, even if I am not speaking on behalf of myself.

Ad

Ally-ship, a relationship of trust and respect with marginalized groups, is not true ally-ship if it is not intersectional.

Feminism without intersectionality is a form of white supremacy. Standing up for issues affecting white people but failing to acknowledge racism at all is another way of saying the issues that affect white people deserve the most attention and discussion.

A possible way to counter this problem may be more simple than it seems.

Rather than plastering posters all over with the principles of community, using the words “diversity and inclusion” like they are concretely defined, or creating more generic slogans, we should just ask people to not be racist.  

Rather than just saying “No Place 4 Hate,” we should also say “no place for racism,” because clearly we need to be reminded. 

It doesn’t take a lot to do these things and it doesn’t mean we have to forget about other marginalized groups.

All it requires is to recognize the privilege of white people and for once think outside of it. That is not a lot to ask.

Katrina Leibee can be reached at letters@collegian.com or Twitter @KatrinaLeibee.

Leave a Comment
More to Discover
About the Contributor
Katrina Leibee, Editor-in-Chief
Katrina Leibee is serving as The Rocky Mountain Collegian's editor in chief for the 2021-22 academic year. Leibee started at The Collegian during the fall of her freshman year writing for the opinion desk. She then moved up to assistant opinion editor and served as the opinion director for the 2020-21 academic year. Leibee is a journalism and political science double major, but her heart lies in journalism. She enjoys writing, editing and working with a team of people to create the paper more than anything. Ask anyone, Leibee loves her job at The Collegian and believes in the great privilege and opportunity that comes with holding a job like this. The biggest privilege is getting to work with a team of such smart, talented editors, writers, photographers and designers. The most important goal Leibee has for her time as editor in chief is to create change, and she hopes her and her staff will break the status quo for how The Collegian has previously done things and for what a college newspaper can be. From creating a desk dedicated entirely to cannabis coverage to transitioning the paper into an alt-weekly, Leibee hopes she can push the boundaries of The Collegian and make it a better paper for its readers and its staff. Leibee is not one to accept a broken system, sit comfortably inside the limits or repeat the words, "That's the way we've always done things." She is a forward thinker with a knack for leadership, and she has put together the best staff imaginable to bring The Collegian to new heights.

Comments (0)

When commenting on The Collegian’s website, please be respectful of others and their viewpoints. The Collegian reviews all comments and reserves the right to reject comments from the website. Comments including any of the following will not be accepted. 1. No language attacking a protected group, including slurs or other profane language directed at a person’s race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, social class, age, physical or mental disability, ethnicity or nationality. 2. No factually inaccurate information, including misleading statements or incorrect data. 3. No abusive language or harassment of Collegian writers, editors or other commenters. 4. No threatening language that includes but is not limited to language inciting violence against an individual or group of people. 5. No links.
All The Rocky Mountain Collegian Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *