I cried the day I was accepted to Wesleyan University in 2018. My tears meant relief, joy and excitement.. I saw admission to this elite private institution as a new opportunity for young black students like me.
As a Sierra Leonean American, I felt limited in access to public education in the United States. I had to contend with low expectations and conditions that devalued my potential, including “accidentally” being assigned English as a second language in elementary school even though English was my first language. Then, when I entered high school, I had to fight for a place in the advanced classes.
I was fortunate to be a part of TeenSHARP, a college admissions program for underrepresented students that exposed me to schools like Wesleyan and taught me how to advocate for myself while paving the way for others.
Little did I know that my acceptance of Wesleyan would open the door to an academic and corporate world where I would see far fewer people who looked like me. While many college students experience their first semester as an exciting time participating in a student group, I spent a lot of time thinking about what it meant to be the only Black woman in a predominantly white class. When affirmative action ends, more students will experience what I felt: being the only black student or one of only a few black students.
I remember exploring Wesleyan for the first time. The halls were filled with photos of graduates, mostly white men, which took me on a trip down memory lane of an institution where I, as a black woman, had never existed.
No matter how much I told myself I belonged, Wesleyan's insidious history, from its photos to its architecture to its racial makeup, was a haunting reminder that while I may have entered the world, black people generally did not.
I wanted to attend a historically black college or university, but the lack of funding for HBCUs means they cannot be generous in providing financial aid, leaving me and many other black students with the option of taking on unsustainable debt. Or trying to get somewhere else.
My acceptance of Wesleyan occurred at a time when race could still be considered in college admissions. This was before the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action, effectively ending the path to hope for black and Latino groups.
Related: Will the Rodriguez family's college dreams survive the end of affirmative action?
But even before the court issued its affirmative action ruling, the gap between the number of black and white college graduates was growing.
Affirmative action was a feeble attempt to create a level playing field. The Supreme Court's decision to do away with it only continues the caste system that prohibits people with marginalized identities from exercising their right to self-determination because we cannot enter spaces where we can thrive.
Ending affirmative action is not only an attack on the benefits of diversity in education, it is a direct way to end the mobility of students like me by closing doors to opportunities that were already difficult to access.
Historically, race has been a social determinant. Race determined the jobs you could get and the schools you could attend. Ignoring race in college admissions will not make the racial issues plaguing our country go away. That will just upset it.
As long as America refuses to look in the mirror and faces social barriers that require affirmative action in the first place, outstanding students of color will be overlooked in the admissions process.
Related: Opinion: Traditional admissions are unnecessary, raise moral concerns, and exclude qualified students.
As I progress in my career, I often encounter situations similar to those I experienced as an undergraduate. That means you may be one of the few black people, or even the only one, in a professional setting.
The Supreme Court's decision set a precedent that now initiatives like the Fearless Fund, a nonprofit that provides funding to Black women entrepreneurs, are under attack. And many companies have suspended diversity, equity, and inclusion programs for fear of being sued.
Now is the time to stop being complacent and educate, inform, and mobilize yourself. The court's decision reminds us that the rights and opportunities we fight for are not given away and that they only stand strong if we are given them.
Alphina Kamara is a development associate at the World Justice Project and a former Fulbright Fellow.
This story about the end of affirmative action was produced by: Hechinger Reportis a nonprofit, independent media outlet focused on inequality and innovation in education. join Hechinger's Newsletter.