Racism. Discrimination. Harassment. Verbal and physical assaults. Microaggressions. Mental health concerns.
These are just a few of the issues that, according to The Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds, minorities and LGBTQ students are more likely to face while on a college campus.
To combat and prevent these issues from impacting students at Ball State University, the Multicultural Center houses four organizations that prioritize drawing together underrepresented students and giving them a community on campus. These clubs include: the Asian Student Union (ASU), Black Student Association (BSA), Latinx Student Union (LSU), and Spectrum.
Happiness and appreciation (LSU)
A quinceañera, a Latinx celebration of turning 15 years old and entering womanhood, is considered a rite of passage in many Latinx countries. However, LSU public relations director, Natalia Ramos, says many Latinas aren’t given the chance to have one. With this in mind, on April 19, LSU gave some of their senior members the quinceañera experience they never got.
“We did it during Women’s Week because we want to uplift women. We want to help show this representation, so we did that, and it was really nice,” Natalia says.
According to Ball State’s Student Organizations webpage, through food, games, and discussions, LSU promotes the identity and unity of Latinx students through intellectual, cultural, and social growth. Every Wednesday, the club meets for a new opportunity to share about Latinx culture.
For Natalia, being a part of LSU has helped her find friends with similar interests and connected her to other Latinx students on campus. The Mexican American student says it can be discouraging to not be able to share her culture with others, and she experiences cultural differences at times with her white roommates.
According to the Ball State Common Data Set, the amount of undergraduates enrolled in the 2021-2022 academic year was 14,409. Of that number, 7.3% identify as Hispanic or Latino.
“I eat so many different things that they don’t eat, and I’m like, ‘Oh, guys, please just try it,’ and they don’t want to,” Natalia says.
After joining LSU in 2022, Natalia says she found community and mutual respect through the club. Connecting with other students through LSU encouraged Natalia to be proud of her culture and heritage while going to a predominantly white institution (PWI).
“There are going to be other people that understand you and your culture and appreciate it,” she says. “I feel like having that self-appreciation is very important.”
LSU is known for their annual fiestas on the green and game nights. LSU also hosts meetings discussing important topics to the Latinx community. Natalia encourages students to attend those meetings as well as the fun events.
“We love when people are just coming to our events and all of them, not just the big party ones,” Natalia says. “We want people to go to those, but we also want people to come to our discussions about intersectionality.”
While tackling relevant issues, LSU prides itself on creating a calm and secure environment where students can share their thoughts and experiences. The organization understands that students have enough stress and want to help relieve it rather than contribute to it.
Happy Place (ASU)
The Chin Burmese people are a small, ethnic group from a mountainous range in Western Burma.
According to the World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples, after 1990, a large presence of military personnel forced many of the Chin population to flee to other countries to escape tyranny and oppression. This is how Betty Zathang’s family found themselves in Indianapolis.
The architecture major and ASU president, whose family battled hardships to find a better opportunity in America, found a slice of home and comfort in Muncie as a result of joining the organization.
“I was kind of worried that I would be in an unfamiliar place, but seeing a lot of other Asian people because of the Asian Student Union, I felt relieved,” Betty says.
According to Ball State’s Student Organizations webpage, ASU is a group of students whose purpose is to provide cultural and educational programming about Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islander history, culture, and interests. The organization meets every Monday from 6-7 p.m. in the Multicultural Center.
Despite being from a smaller Asian ethnicity, Betty has found that meeting other Burmese students has allowed her to be proud of her culture and build strong relationships with others. They help each other practice speaking Burmese and talk about their heritage to keep it alive.
“I really appreciate the people,” Betty says. “I’m always with them, and I feel very at peace when I’m with them.”
The senior acknowledges that many ASU members are adopted and didn’t grow up immersed in the culture they’re from. ASU acts as liaison for those adopted students to connect them with their roots, Betty says.
Along with educating Asian students about different Asian customs and putting on weekly events, ASU aids the diversification of Ball State as a whole.
As of 2022, Asian students make up 2.2% of all Ball State undergraduate students. Betty says ASU aims to thoughtfully introduce different communities on campus to Asian culture and to encourage students to learn more about them.
“Having these clubs, I think it would improve the diversity and inclusivity a lot of colleges advocate for,” Betty says. “… We’re far away from home, but if we have people that look like us, it will feel comfortable.”
Love (BSA)
North Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio, and Indiana all had one thing in common for Leeyah Griffin: strong Black communities with strong Black community leaders. However, despite growing up in communities flowing with Black culture, Leeyah didn’t see Black women in leadership positions. What she often saw was male leaders in male dominated organizations. Joining BSA, Leeyah says, was her first step toward shifting that narrative.
“I want to change that within my community,” Leeyah says. “You can be a woman, you can be Black, you can be whatever, and you’re going to run it.”
One large factor that sets BSA apart from the communities Leeyah grew up in is its leadership dynamic. The last three presidents of BSA have been Black women, and members of the executive board belong to all identities and genders. Leeyah describes BSA as a true representation of the Black community on campus.
According to the Multicultural Student Organization’s webpage, BSA’s mission is to aid in the growth and development of students through a series of culturally, socially, and academically- focused discussions and programs from a unique African-American perspective. It meets bi-monthly on Tuesdays from 6-8 p.m. Leeyah says the organization strives to assure Black students can be themselves and talk about their experiences because many of the other students are going through the same things.
“We’re all in PWIs, and we’re just trying to find our space, our community, and our group,” Leeyah says.
As a third year member of BSA and the organization’s event coordinator, Leeyah describes BSA as a safe space for Black students, who make up 9.3% of Ball State’s undergraduate students. Leeyah assures new students that joining BSA can give them a close-knit on-campus family that supports and loves each other.
“Within BSA, it’s like I see myself. I see people that look like me and that are a part of so many different things,” Leeyah says. “It’s like we just help each other. We feed off of each other.”
Every year during Black History Month, the organization has an entire month of events that celebrates Black culture and success. BSA partners with the African Student Association (ASA) to put on an all white brunch where both organizations wear all white clothing, share food, and honor Black history.
“We do a toast; we do a prayer,” Leeyah says. “We usually partner with ASA, … so it was really just a whole Black moment.”
The support from BSA members goes beyond events related to the organization. While running in the 2023 Homecoming court, members would often come up to Leeyah to tell her she had their vote.
The organization ends every year with a “heartwarming” farewell party in The Village that allows seniors to enjoy one last hurrah with their chosen campus family.
Safety, hope, assurance (Spectrum)
Connie Reed isn’t a stranger to conservative families. As a transgender woman, being a part of a “traditional” family has forced her to hide her identity when she’s home. However, since joining Spectrum last September, Connie says she’s found a fresh start and support system on campus. Through meeting queer students and transgender friends, Connie was able to gain the courage to start experimenting with her gender identity and pronouns.
“My time at Ball State has been significant toward figuring out who I truly am,” Connie says. “I couldn’t be more thankful to all my friends and experiences that have helped me through that messy process.”
According to Ball State’s Multicultural Organizations webpage, Spectrum has served as Ball State’s organization for gender, sexual and romantic minorities and their allies since 1974. The organization meets on the first Thursday of every month from 5-6 p.m. in the Multicultural Center, and Connie welcomes all students to join the club even if they can’t attend all the meetings.
Known for their annual drag queen show, where members of the community and organization are invited to perform on a stage in their drag persona, the organization often holds events focused on creativity and expression without fear.
“It can be a very tense time to be queer right now, but we want to stress to as many people as we can that we are a space you all can rely on,” Connie says.
This year alone, 17 bills that pertain to transgender youth in Indiana have been reported by Trans Legislation Tracker. Amongst these bills, some prevent gender-affirming care for transgender minors while others prohibit the usage of preferred pronouns and chosen names in classrooms.
According to the Postsecondary National Policy Institute, in a 2020 survey from the Association of American Universities that sampled more than 180,000 undergraduate and graduate students, approximately 17% identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual, asexual, queer, or questioning.
After becoming the president of Spectrum this fall, Connie is hoping to return the favor by helping Ball State students that have doubts and anxieties about their sexuality or gender know they are not alone. She emphasizes that students, especially ones that have recently come out, may worry about the violence happening against members of the LGBTQ community. That’s where Connie sees Spectrum’s importance lies: in being a safe space for queer students to be themselves.
“If we’re not there to give them the opportunity, then who would be?” Connie says. “I just know that I’ve been incredibly honored to give my fellow students courage and confidence.”
A message to all students
A common misconception about the big four organizations is that members have to identify with the race or sexualities the clubs support and represent. However, Natalia encourages all students who are interested and willing to learn to attend meetings for these clubs.
“With people that are minoring or majoring in Japanese and they’re not Japanese, if you go to the Asian Student Union, you can see why it’s important to them, and you should be understanding [of] their culture if you’re going to be working with people in that [culture],” Natalia says.
ASU members are a mix of Asian and non-Asian students, Betty says. She emphasizes that joining a big four organization is an opportunity to learn about a different culture and show appreciation for it.
Spectrum welcomes allies who want to support the community and doesn’t discriminate against members, Connie says. Students who are interested in joining a big four organization should visit the Multicultural Center’s student organizations webpage to learn more.
Sources: The Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds, Latinx Student Union, Multicultural Center, World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous People, Trans Legislation Tracker, PNPI
