Antiracism Education for International Students
The Antiracism Education Committee provides a variety of learning and engagement opportunities for NYU’s international student community. Our goal is to improve the community’s access to the complex conversations about race and racism in the US and provide a foundational understanding of the US-specific context that takes into account our students’ diverse backgrounds. In doing so, we aim to highlight issues that specifically affect international students, such as the experience of being racialized, being part of a racial minority for the first time, or being confronted with xenophobia or racism. At the same time, we seek to unpack the assumptions about race and identity international students bring with them to the US.
The committee strategically aligns itself with NYU’s overarching commitment to create an inclusive environment and systematically integrates the lived experiences of international students. By responding to current events and providing opportunities to the community to share their stories, we venture to remove barriers to these crucial conversations and foster a greater sense of belonging across the University’s diverse student body. The committee has an ongoing commitment to examine our practices critically and engage in a learning process in conjunction with the international student community to strive towards a more equitable space for everyone at NYU.
Workshop Series
At the beginning of each semester, the committee organizes a three-part webinar/workshop series for international students. To access recording links below, you must log into Zoom with your NYU ID and password using the SSO option at nyu.zoom.us. You cannot use an external email.
Upcoming Antiracism Education Workshops
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Part 1: Introduction to Race, Racism, and Social Justice in the US
This session aims to introduce new international students to the conversations that people in the US are having about race and racism (e.g., the Black Lives Matter movement, the 2020 elections, conversations surrounding voting rights). It offers a foundational understanding of racism in the US as a way to contextualize these conversations (e.g., US-specific terminology, manifestations of racism, systemic racism in the US) and provides resources that are available to the international student community for learning and support.
Part 2: History of Immigration and Xenophobia in the US
This session, which was first added to the series in the Fall 2021 semester, provides an introduction to the topics of immigration and xenophobia and where the two intersect. It reviews a brief history of immigration to the US with a focus on legislations and court cases curtailing entry as well as access to naturalization (e.g., Chinese Exclusion Act, Emergency Quotas, Immigration Acts). Finally, it examines current topics in immigration and how these relate to the lived experiences of international students (e.g., DACA, National Interest Exemptions, Anti-Asian Hate Crimes).
Part 3: Race and Identity in the US
This is a hybrid session aiming to illustrate the concepts of social identities and salient identity. It addresses notions of race, racism, and stereotypes that international students come to the US with, and how these relate to the discourse here. In the second half, it opens up the conversation to international students to discuss how they experience racialization and racism in the US and provides them with a forum to share their experiences as they pertain to race and identity in this country.
Panel Events
The committee also organizes a panel event for international students each semester. The events feature faculty or alumni as panel guests and are moderated by international students. Please see below for an overview of our previous panel events.
Diversity and Inclusion in the Global Workplace
This panel featured a conversation with NYU international alumni from a variety of disciplines sharing how they navigate diversity and inclusion in the workplace, how their international student experience at NYU has shaped unique opportunities and successes, and how they approach challenges in the global workplace.
Global Perspectives on Race and Identity
This panel featured experts from NYU’s network based in Shanghai, Florence, Paris, and New York. In this session, we discussed how the conversation on race and identity shapes the international student experience in the US, how the conversation is evolving outside the US, and what effect it has on the study abroad experience at our global sites.
