My name is Tiffany Martínez. As a McNair Fellow and student scholar, I’ve presented at national conferences in San Francisco, San Diego, and Miami. I have crafted a critical reflection piece that was published in a peer-reviewed journal managed by the Pell Institute for the Study of Higher Education and Council for Opportunity in Education. I have consistently juggled at least two jobs and maintained the status of a full-time student and Dean’s list recipient since my first year at Suffolk University. I have used this past summer to supervise a teen girls empower program and craft a thirty page intensive research project funded by the federal government. As a first generation college student, first generation U.S. citizen, and aspiring professor I have confronted a number of obstacles in order to earn every accomplishment and award I have accumulated. In the face of struggle, I have persevered and continuously produced content that is of high caliber.
I name these accomplishments because I understand the vitality of credentials in a society where people like me are not set up to succeed. My last name and appearance immediately instills a set of biases before I have the chance to open my mouth. These stereotypes and generalizations forced on marginalized communities are at times debilitating and painful. As a minority in my classrooms, I continuously hear my peers and professors use language that both covertly and overtly oppresses the communities I belong to. Therefore, I do not always feel safe when I attempt to advocate for my people in these spaces. In the journey to become a successful student, I swallow the “momentary” pain from these interactions and set my emotions aside so I can function productively as a student.
Today is different. At eight o’clock this morning, I felt both disrespected and invalidated. For years I have spent ample time dissecting the internalized racism that causes me to doubt myself, my abilities, and my aspirations. As a student in an institution extremely populated with high-income white counterparts, I have felt the bitter taste of not belonging. It took until I used my cloud of doubt and my sociological training to realize that my insecurities are rooted in the systems I navigate every day. I am just as capable if not more so than those around me and my accomplishments are earned.
This morning, my professor handed me back a paper (a literature review) in front of my entire class and exclaimed “this is not your language.” On the top of the page they wrote in blue ink: “Please go back and indicate where you cut and paste.” The period was included. They assumed that the work I turned in was not my own. My professor did not ask me if it was my language, instead they immediately blamed me in front of peers. On the second page the professor circled the word “hence” and wrote in between the typed lines “This is not your word.” The word “not” was underlined. Twice. My professor assumed someone like me would never use language like that. As I stood in the front of the class while a professor challenged my intelligence I could just imagine them reading my paper in their home thinking could someone like her write something like this?
In this interaction, my undergraduate career was both challenged and critiqued. It is worth repeating how my professor assumed I could not use the word “hence,” a simple transitory word that connected two relating statements. The professor assumed I could not produce quality research. The professor read a few pages that reflected my comprehension of complex sociological theories and terms and invalidated it all. Their blue pen was the catalyst that opened an ocean of self-doubt that I worked so hard to destroy. In front of my peers, I was criticized by a person who had the academic position I aimed to acquire. I am hurting because my professor assumed that the only way I could produce content as good as this was to “cut and paste.” I am hurting because for a brief moment I believed them.
Instead of working on my English paper that is due tomorrow, I felt it crucial to reflect on the pain that I am sick of swallowing. My work is a reflection of my growth in a society that sees me as the other. For too long I have others assume I am weak, unintelligent, and incapable of my own success. Another element of this invalidation is that as I sit here with teary eyes describing the distress I am too familiar with, the professor has probably forgotten all about it. My heartache can not be universally understood and until it is, I have to continue to fight. At this moment, there are students who will never understand the desolation that follows an underlined “not.” There are students who will be assumed capable without the need to list their credentials in the beginning of a reflective piece. How many degrees do I need for someone to believe I am an academic?
At this moment, I am in the process of advocating for myself to prove the merit of my content to people who will never understand what it is like to be someone like me. Some of you won’t understand how every word that I use to describe this moment was diligently selected in a way that would properly reflect my intellect. I understand that no matter how hard I try or how well I write, these biases will continue to exist around me. I understand that my need to fight against these social norms is necessary.
In reality, I am tired and I am exhausted. On one hand, this experience solidifies my desire to keep going and earn a PhD but on the other it is a confirmation of how I always knew others saw me. I am so emotional about this paper because in the phrase “this is not your word,” I look down at a blue inked reflection of how I see myself when I am most suspicious of my own success. The grade on my paper was not a letter, but two words: “needs work.” And it’s true. I am going to graduate in May and enter a grad program that will probably not have many people who look like me. The entire field of academia is broken and erases the narratives of people like me. We all have work to do to fix the lack of diversity and understanding among marginalized communities. We all have work to do.
Academia needs work.
TIFFANY MARTÍNEZ 
Tiffany – I’m ‘almost’ glad this happened to you because you are the perfect person to articulate how students of color are far too often underestimated and marginalized in academic context. Should you ever have any interest in turning this or any of your other writings into educational material for high schoolers, please visit http://booksthatgrow.com and / or reach out to me.
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My problem with the article as I came across it is that at the end of it, Cosmopolitan thought :
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Really?! Why? Because reading about a chick feeling denigrated would make me want to look at pictures of “cute” clothes?
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I was a bit shocked to see such hate in the newer comments. Keep fighting, Tiffany. I am also a Latina on the road to obtain my Master’s in Spring 2017 in Infant Mental Health. If anything, this hate illustrates how in need of love they are…and your work in social work may be able to provide such needs for future families to come.
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If you look to be different you always will be. What if the teacher was doubting the originality of the paper?
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‘This hate’?
Pretty strong a word for an incident that thus far the only proof that the professor is in the wrong here is the student. Perhaps her paper is plagerized from other sources. Calling out someone as a racist without bothering to hear their version of things is completely wrong.
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You really should put the entire paper or at least the paragraph that the professor wrote about on view so the readers can judge if you actuality plagiarized or not. At this point there’s no proof that the professor was in any way wrong other than your word.
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Not only that I think it is also important to give the professor a chance to defend him or herself. The only thing to me that the professor has done wrong is accusing her of plagiarism in front of the class, which should I took place in a private setting even if the professor has hard proof.
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What is “Latinx population”? It’s right there on the line above “hence”. That mispelling bothers me more than “hence”. Also, why would you use “hence” at the beginning of a sentence?
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http://www.latina.com/lifestyle/our-issues/why-we-say-latinx-trans-gender-non-conforming-people-explain
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This article is so well written – and all you can focus on is a word you are not familiar with…
In Spanish, Latina is used for persons of feminine gender; Latino is used for those of masculine gender, or by default. For example, a group of mixed or unknown gender would be referred to as Latinos. The neologisms Latinx and Latin@[43] were coined as a gender-neutral alternative to this traditional usage.[44] The X functions as a variable, encompassing those who identify as male, female, or non-binary. The @ symbol is seen as containing both the masculine ‘o’ and feminine ‘a’, thus serving a similar purpose.[45] Neither has been widely adopted.
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Has it ever occurred to you that the professor had read enough of your work that he didn’t think it sounded like something you wrote? Everybody has a “voice” when they write, and he seemed to think this paper didn’t sound like yours. Why would you jump to the conclusion that it had anything to do with your race? Are you so dialed in to see racism that you look for it in every interaction?
On a side note, there’s nothing wrong with the word hence. I use it myself fairly often.
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Tiffany, I taught writing. I would have rejoiced if you were my student. This is racist! Hence, take it to the administration. Shameful!
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“Tiffany, I taught writing. I would have rejoiced if you were my student. This is racist! Hence, take it to the administration. Shameful!”
I would hope one that supposedly taught writing would recognize the incorrect use of the word ‘hence’ at the beginning of a sentence instead of praising it.
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That’s my impression too. Without looking at the whole paper as well as her other writings, we have no context of what the teacher’s intention was. Hence isn’t exactly a SAT word. How do we know she tend to use “so” in her conclusions. Now, could she have learned to use “hence” instead of “so”? Sure. However, that’s all speculations, and we can’t just hang someone using speculations. I find it odd that she called the professor “assumed” that she being an Latina and therefore can’t use the word “hence,” isn’t she making an assumption about the professor’s thoughts? You can’t assume someone is a racist, it’s just as worse as the racist.
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You’re writing is awful. You write as if someone who was illiterate taught you how to write. If you want to see a racist and a whiner, you only need to look in the mirror. It’s imbeciles like you that hurt hispanics who have gone through real racism. You are trash.
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Your.
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Hey Dracula- it’s YOUR writing that’s awful. Not YOU’RE. That’s a contraction meaning “you are “. As in “you’re an idiot, Dracula”.
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“Your” not “you’re”….. duh! ….
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As for the microphone dropping, Tiffany Martinez, please pick it back up. The word is academician, not academic, you dope. Maybe you would do better mopping floors than trying to clean up your terrible writing.
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Both academician and academic can be used.
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boo fkn hoo …… how is this racist? Pathetic
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You’re trying way too hard. “Hence”? Really? Let’s be perfectly honest here, that word is cringe worthy not to mention…you do not use that word in real life. So what’s your problem? Are you quick to point out that’s racist? It’s education. Deal with it. You know damn well you’ve never used the word “hence” in real life.
Since we are on the topic of English lessons here, I would recommend you go back a grade for that as well. “those who work professionally” is incorrect. Try again.
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What????? Who even are you though?
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Benjamin McGrath eats shlt everyday…!
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“Hence” is perfectly fine in a research paper. Research paper is not about bells and whistles.
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Tiffany Martinez,
The actions of your Teacher are pure prejudice,
I should know, fought it all my life.
In order to succeed, I acted as if nothing was happening to me. Developed a strong skin and turned my eyes away looking foward towards the horizon.
Walking straight, ignoring comments and horrible actions,
But there are time in life you cannot look away. You must stand up and speak out.
That Professor should be fired!
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The article that contained the link to your blog is almost 100 per cent in DISAGREEMENT with your infantile whining and pathetic playing of the RACE CARD. Grow up you coddled little girl, when your in the work place your attitude won’t be tolerated. Your another whose sense of ENTITLEMENT is out of touch with reality.
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Maria’s an idiot
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And Miguel
Miguelito, Mijo
ese es tu nombre?
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Maria, you need to see a psychiatrist.
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Dracula, you are welcome to join me in the psychiatrist office
Y con ese nombre que tienes
Lo necesitas mas que yo!
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One thing you must learn is to choose your battles carefully. If you try to fight every bigoted affrontation, all you will do is fight trivial battles. You must continue your education as a warrior. Put your energy into being fierce. You do, however, have some errors, such as referring to your female teacher possessive as ‘their’ or to her as ‘them’. There are some other problems as well. Additionally, you will make a better case if you are less passionate. As a female retired I understand the pain and frustration of not being taken seriously. The worst thing you can do is allow other’s prejudices define who you are. This professor is just a tiny room you have to pass through. Do not give her power over you.
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Have you considered that this may BE the battle (out of many left unchallenged) she has picked? What level of passionate would be acceptable to you I wonder? How is calling out prejudice in others = “allowing other’s prejudice to define who you are?” That makes no sense at all.
Basically you’re saying shut up and take it… This “tiny room” is just one of many and many more will have to pass through it.
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For how many years did you have to suppress yourself and allow yourself to be silenced? For how many years did you learn to suppress your emotions so that you would not be called angry, or emotional, or too “passionate”? Your advice would be appropriate for a young woman in the 1970s, and I do give you credit for having learned to survive in your career.
But, this is 2016, and the use of “they” and “them” is becoming commonly accepted as gender neutral writing. And, as an older feminist, I can rejoice, because a young woman does not have to sit down, shut up and be less angry.
I appreciate the wisdom in your comment. But perhaps, it was wisdom for a different era.
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Sorry, but there are numerous grammatical errors here especiaally the repeated reference to this one professor as they, them, their etc. It should be he or she, singular not plural. This person is a shitty writer who will some day be a equally shitty professor. Please stop bitching and become a better writer. My sense is thst in class she would never say hence and comes off as the sassy latina, no wonder the prof. Did not buy her act.
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racist a little, are we?
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MM certainly is a ignorant rascist !.
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AN ignorant racist. Please, if you’re going to insult me, get your grammar right.
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Obviously the ambiguous pronouns were intentional. Obviously you’re not perceptive enough to anticipate why this might be. You’ve missed the entire point of this piece, and left an ignorant comment complete with spelling errors. Well done.
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Miguel, I think MM is being sarcastic.
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Thank you for proving her point that racism is alive & well when judging the credentials of minority students by calling her a ‘sassy latina’ & reducing her to a stereotype to justify this kind of treatment. A blog post written under emotional duress is hardly going to have the same measure of editorial thoroughness as an academic paper. Also,you might like to know that referring to their lecturer using plural pronouns has become increasingly acceptable in academic writing, especially when it is used as a tool to avoid gendered language or to avoid identifying the individual in question by revealing their gender. ‘Hence’ is a word used in many a literary work & is hardly an obscure word used in formal writing. The paper should be judged not on her ‘sassiness’ in class & by its content on the subject alone. To invent the scenario you did & make assumptions about her writing abilities from a handful of sentences is exactly the kind of casual racism the author encountered from her professor.
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Actually, according to the rules found in any grade 10 grammar text book, if one does not want to use a gender specific word, non specific pronouns such as them and they are completely allowable. Hence, one could very well assume that Ms Martinez was purposefully being vague in order the keep the subject of her diatribe as anonymous as humanly possible. Of course, your assumption that a dean’s list scholar must not know grade 10 grammar because she belongs to a marginalised community really just proves Ms Martinez’s point far more than it proves your own.
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Bridgit,
This is pure prejudice,
I have fought it all my life.
The professor is not a teacher educating his students, his action show another hidden meaning ,
The professor should be fired!#
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You suck Bridgit. What a nasty person you are. Hope you aren’t getting your degree in Social Work.
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People often use plural pronouns when avoiding a gendered pronoun. English is an evolving language, always has been, and this is quite commonplace now.
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“especiaally?” LOL. Sorry but you’re an asshole. Please stop bitching and keep your bigoted bullshit to yourself. Her “act” went WAY over your small, tiny head.
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And you Bridgit… are, is, their etc. a racist piece of Irish dung!
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I honestly can’t tell if this response is satire
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Thank you for your piece. Like they say: “it gets better”, but it never really disappears. I, Latino American outside the US, even after I secured a career as faculty, always have the vexing sensation that my work must be twice as good as anyones’ just to have a chance to get a fair review, be published, be cited. Well, that just motivates me to work twice as hard! Stay strong and keep fighting — you’ll get there.
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Assuming that talking to the professor has already been attempted and is a lost cause, the next step would be to complain to faculty and request a review of the case (e.g. the same process you would use to dispute a grade). In your dispute, the following would be worth mentioning:
All modern colleges have access to anti-plagiarism software, via browser-based electronic paper submission platforms like TurnItIn (or its industry-side cousin, iThenticate). Why not let you submit your paper through one of those, and the plagiarism detection results can speak for themselves?
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Can you publish the paper on this blog to show everyone how intelligent a Latinx can really be, and show those ignorant bigots the skill of those they believe to be lesser for their adverse heritage.
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*everyone can see how
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Perhaps she isn’t showing it on purpose? If what this election has taught us, is that people today are quick judge and due process isn’t really necessary when you accuse of someone being racist.
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It is nice to read about your ONLINE support addressing Discrimination (Racis, Sexist etc. etc.) I already wrote to several people at Suffolk University expressing outrage at the behaviour of The Professor, and have recommended that Disciplinary Actiion be taken on the Professor, and I recommend that you d try and contact the Board of Regents to condemn the actions of the Professor, instead of just Mulling around and Brainstorming and acgtually doing someting about harassment and NOT just validate this king of BEHAVIOUR by REMAINING SILENT about HARASSMENT, DISCRIMINATION, and HATE. Please do something and not just sympathize and empathize and Blog about it and advertise it!
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Tiffany, thank you for telling this powerful and painful story… I am writing to you from a room full of people at the Princeton Public Library for a conversation about Racial Literacy, and we are talking and thinking together about what can be done to create the changes so desperately needed in academia and in our society as a whole. You have friends and co-conspirators here.
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Shelly Krause, It is nice to read that you and others are sitting in The Princeton Uni. Library brainstorming about how to bring about changes in Academia addressing Discrimination (Racis, Sexist etc. etc.) I already wrote to several people at Suffolk University expressing outrage at the behaviour of The Professor, and have recommended that Disciplinary Actiion be taken on the Professor, and I recommend that you and your group do the same and try and contact the Board of Regents to condemn the actions of the Professor, instead of just Mulling around and Brainstorming and acgtually doing someting about harassment and NOT just validate this king of BEHAVIOUR by REMAINING SILENT about HARASSMENT, DISCRIMINATION, and HATE. Please do something and not just sympathize and empathize and Blog about it and advertise it!
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Tiffany Martinez, you NEED to complainant to your Board of Regents of your UNIVERSITY as you this BIGOTRY exhibited by your Professor is UNWORTHY of Professorship and reflects verY poorly on the BIGOTED Professor and more so on the Board of Regents for Being Imbecilities for allowing a Moron to assume the role of Professorship. It is such a shame and disgrace, and shows madness and hate being orchestrated and unabated in New Zion (America) by the sick demented retards with no regard for HUMAN RIGHTS or Humanity and just o prevail allowing lawlessness to prevail in broad daylight. What a BUNCH of MORONIC DEMENTED SICK FUCKS !
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bigotry? the professor said that she needed to improve and called her out on plagiarism. there was NOTHING racist about the words he said or wrote.
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That professor is disgustingly unfair. I’m not new to this as my nationality has been the subject of harassment by race discriminating so-called professionals. Be brave and courageous, Girl. Stand up for yourself, be an inspiration and role model for others! That professor does not deserve to be in academia as he could stifle the hopes of more promising students!
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You know when Yosemite Sam gets all fired up where flames shoot out his ears. That is how reading this made me feel.
Plagiarism in any area is distasteful; in academia vile. To openly accuse a student of an error so egregious that it could constitute expulsion & besmirch her reputation & limit her future is reprehensible. If her professor has any pause to doubt the originality of thought, the correct thing would be to withhold the paper & speak to the student in private. Absolutely unprofessional.
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and maybe he found the words copy and pasted. I had 4 students who once turned in the same paper. they came in front of the class asking why they received a zero so I gave them the reason. reap what you sow
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Do they actually believe that a student who has spent years in school couldn’t possibly grasp what the word “hence” means and use it? I mean, I would lean toward “therefore”, but that’s just me.
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Slight correction:
Do they actually believe that a student of color who has spent years in school couldn’t possibly grasp what the word “hence” means and use it? I mean, I would lean toward “therefore”, but that’s just me.
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It’s not about understanding of words. It’s more about choice of words. For example, perhaps the blogger turned in 5 papers and in each of them she uses the word “so” for her conclusions. In this paper she used “hence” and other words she do not generally use in her paper and that caused a flag. Now, I think it’s completely unprofessional of the professor to call her out (and accused her of plagiarizing without hard proof) in front of the students (though not surprising, I have plenty of professors who have high IQ but little to no EQ) and that along should warrant a discussion.
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ohhh HENCE such big word only super bright minds can use it..what a piece of s..t professor.
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Since when are words owned by one group of people or another. If it’s in the dictionary then it belongs to all of us.
If the professor had half a clue and was truly concerned about plagiarism he/she could have run it through any number of online tools. Hence, the professor is just a lazy jerk.
Keep true to your dreams. You can do this.
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Tiffany – I am so sorry to hear that you experienced this. As a lifelong academic I understand the impact that the judgments of others can have on our sense of self and our confidence in our abilities. I am in no way defending your instructor and agree with your criticism regarding the manner in which s/he communicated with you. I hope you aren’t but you may be absolutely correct in your interpretation of the instructor’s words.
However, I would like to give you a possible second interpretation. As instructors we read your writing on a regular basis through your papers, in-class writing assignments, and even emails. We also listen to you speak in classroom discussions, presentations, before and after classes, and in office appointments. Every comment you indicate your professor made I have made at one time or another in response to a student’s writing. My comments are not about my students’ intelligence. My comments are a reaction to the difference between the writing I am reading and all the other examples of that student’s communication style that I have internalized over the course of a semester. My thoughts when reading papers are not “Could someone like her have written something like this?” My thoughts are “is this writing consistent with the style of communication that I have seen from this student?” If I see an inconsistency I use comments like those your instructor used to invite students to look at their writing in a more holistic way – as a body of work instead of as an individual artifact.
I encourage you to continue to believe in yourself and in your abilities. And I ask you to reconsider your analysis that ‘the entire field of academia is broken’ and instead focus on your last line. Academia needs work. And, perhaps you can be a part of doing that work to make academia better.
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“If I see an inconsistency I use comments like those your instructor used to invite students to look at their writing in a more holistic way”
So immediately accusing the student of plagiarism is to “invite students to look at their writing”? Sorry, but this is ridiculous. If you accuse a student of plagiarism, I hope you can provide proof. TurnItIn would be a start.
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why do you assume there is no proof?
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No. You are exhibiting the same privilege that the teacher did to this young woman. There is no other way to read it. What’s more SHE gets decide what this means. A Latina woman has a far better grasp of what it racist than you do. What you are doing here is called whitesplaining. Its telling a person of color their experiences aren’t real. Its deeply hurtful, and makes me question your commitment to education and your fitness as an instructor.
To put it bluntly, any professor who approaches their students with anything less than trust, humility, and an open mind needs to be fired. That is your job. Shaming students for being smart is not. Professors who deserve their jobs take an “innocent until proven guilty” approach. Unless you can PROVE it conclusively with Google or turnitin.com that they copied large parts of their essay, they are innocent. Its part of your job as an educator to find that out. Its not difficult; all you have to do is Google a few sentences. If you don’t know how, it’s easy. Right click at the beginning of any text you want to search, and move the mouse to the end of the section while holding down the button. Left click over the highlighted section and click “search on Google.”. If you suspect and can’t prove it, they didn’t do it.
Add to this, a single word is never enough to make any kind of judgment, for any kind of reason. Its foolish to think that it is. What would the student gain by that, first of all? They write 999 words and plagiarize one? Does that make sense to you? Of course not. And, isn’t the point of college to learn? I’ve written papers with words I didn’t know until I did research for that paper. That is called learning. It should be celebrated, not shamed.
Of course, in this case, the professor was assuming the student didn’t know a common word. That says a lot about the teacher, and none of it good. The fact you are agreeing with her says some troubling things about you, as well.
But, I will do more than you or the teacher listed in the article did, and give you the benefit of the doubt. I am going to assume that you know why teachers are important. You know that your job as an educator is to encourage and build up your students, not attack them. I feel so sorry for you that have been driven to a place where you can’t do that. I hope you take some time off and reassess. Spend the time educating yourself on privilege, sexism, racism and academia. Read more stories like this (there are plenty, again Google), and put yourself in that story. Ask yourself how you would feel. Ask yourself if you would ever question a male student or a white student in this way. Above all, ask yourself if you are willing to learn from your students. If you won’t learn from them, they can’t learn from you. If you have reached that point, you need to find a new job.
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You’re an ignorant, condescending cunt. Just because she’s “Latina” doesn’t mean she understands a concept better. Your implication of such is actually what would be classified as racist. You need to pull your head from your cunt and stop your bigotry of low expectations. You are treating her as a less than that needs special privileges to compete with her peers. IT’s pathetic.
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I mean you no disrespect, but were portions of the work not properly footnoted or cited? I had a white male classmate of mine booted from the Naval Academy for just that.
There are certainly ignorant and biased profs out there, but it might help to see your work in its totality tp fully make your case.
Best to you.
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My only caution would be to examine carefully your motives for seeking a Ph.D. I’ve been down this path, and while my academic credentials will always stand me in good stead, I’ve since realized that the pursuit of them was heavily influenced by a need to prove something to others.
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Right here, this person is so right. I continue to wonder why we prop up these institutions of oppression, and a lot of it is just how we are socialized. Just like people are told to want the newest phone, people are told to want the shiniest most prestigious degree.
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Hey Tiffany, keep up the good work. I’m sorry to hear that someone would treat you like this — honestly I got so mad reading this, just thinking about one human treating another with so little respect. Thank you for sharing your story and I hope that this will help prejudiced professors learn to grade work on its own merit rather than on the ethnic heritage of the student. I was so lucky in college to have amazing teachers who I do not believe would ever have done something like this, so I hope you can find people who respect you and your abilities, and one day as an academic leader yourself you can set an example for others. This article is well-written and helped me to better understand a problem that I have never dealt with directly. I tutor students from all over the world, though, so I will always keep this in mind as one of the obstacles less ‘privileged’ individuals (sadly) may have to face. Thanks for sharing and best wishes for success in your future.
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Seguí demostrando que están equivocados.
Mucha fuerza.
Saludos desde Argentina.
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That prof has a lacuna in his brain. Oh wait. I can’t use that word; I’m Hispanic. I plum forgot. Oops. Did it again.
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I’ve lived a pretty long life. Does the professorial stupidity described here shock me? Not at all. This sort of abject nonsense is ubiquitous in our society/ in most societies, and of course, not just in academia. This essay warms my heart though. Ms. Martinez takes the right path; she answers doubt, arrogance and meanness with craft, insight and palpable vulnerability. The truism goes… that it’s not so much the obstacles one encounters that matters, but how one responds. I’m sorry for the friction Ms. Martinez faces; it’s not fair in the least; but I’m encouraged that she has the poise and instinct to model a perfect response in the medium that demolishes the criticism. I suspect that Ms. Martinez will change minds throughout her career and life — I’m left hopeful.
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“Academia needs work,” may be true, but academia consists of individuals. Once upon a time, in the 1980s, I was a 19-year old university student (White, male, first person in my family to attend college) and I used the word “gilded” in a paper. I got a similar written reaction about my vocabulary from the instructor. This incident had sufficient impact on me that 32 years later I can recall it as if it were yesterday. Professors’ words have power and weight. That’s why now, having been teaching in higher ed for 19 years, I’d ask you to not lump all academics together. We’re individuals and not all the same..even the White ones.
Another professor threw a chalk board eraser at me once too. But, that’s another story for another day.
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What is with these professors who can’t bother to check? I teach at the college level, and when I run across a phrase that seems unusual, I put it in quotes and google it, instead of assuming. If it doesn’t have a match on the internet, I would re-read the entire essay for consistency, and if it feels awkward I will ask the student to clarify, in a non-accusatory way! College is a time to find one’s voice, and experimentation through written expression should be applauded.
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Your story is the embodiment of the struggles faced by Latino Americanos. Your writing is the personification of beauty.
Keep your chin up, be proud.
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I was deeply moved by your blog: your writing is expressive and powerful! The form of humiliation to which you were subjected has no place in education — especially University education. Your Professor appears to be unworthy of the title, and in my University her conduct would be regarded as (at best) an infraction of academic ethics and treated accordingly. Meanwhile, it might be useful to find a peer or another professor who will engage with the ideas in your essay, so that you can receive an appropriate category of feedback.
I wish you luck and success.
Bernard Sufrin (Emeritus Fellow, Computer Science, University of Oxford)
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You DID use ‘hence’ incorrectly, and you shouldn’t use exclamation points in academic papers for inflection.
Congratulations, however, on your academic accomplishments, to date, and I do wish you a successful future 🙂
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Brendan, I agree with your response. I was attacked here for sharing my opinion. I hate to have a Professor accused of racism without any provided evidence. Hopefully this does open a discussion about bias in grading, however, students need to be able to accept criticism. Professors need to be able to honor a student’s privacy.
You cannot start your sentence with “hence” because you used it in exchange of “for this reason” which means you need provide a statement before it. I am bothered that what seems to be your thesis statement is punctuated with an exclamation point.
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Brendan and Cubanlatina, you are not the ones grading the paper. This isn’t about the correctness of Tiffany’s grammar. This is about being accused of plagiarism in front of her class. If the professor has a legitimate reason for believing that any student has plagiarized (and there are dozens of software programs that can check this today), then that professor should talk to the student privately. It is apparent that this professor does not know how to use these programs as almost all instructors today require papers to be submitted electronically – specifically so they can do this check.
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Please watch this. It’s funny, but I’m serious.
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Tiffany, if you have nothing to hide, then you hand your paper back to this professor and tell them to put the paper through one of the many plagiarism software programs. Then, march down to the Dean of Students and report your public humiliation and ask to file a complaint against this professor. Chin up – you do not need to stand for that type of treatment.
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Something very similar happened when I was a Freshman, 19, in English 101. Some lessons in life are very hard, nonetheless a learning experience. Some are consequential and snowball. Shall we analyze the inconsequential or the snowball?
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Hi Tiffany,
I’m with WBUR, Boston’s NPR Station, on the program Radio Boston. We’re wondering if you might speak to our host on Wednesday or Thursday about this? Thank you.
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Yes, please Tiffany. Do go on WBUR and speak for all the other excellent latino/latina/black/native american/pacific island, etc. students who have had their work unfairly discredited. I am a retired professor, and like an earlier poster I can tell you that what your professor did was not only racist, but procedurally wrong. Faculty should never, ever accuse a student of plagiarism in public or based on so little evidence.
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I once had my academic advisor tell me that I wasn’t intelligent enough to write a decent essay when I asked him to explain where I was going wrong…I couldn’t believe it!! So I went to see my feminism professor who clearly explained to me the formula that they were looking for (I had come from a different academic background, US to UK). The very next time I wrote an essay I received an astoundingly high mark/grade. Just like my academic advisor, that professor doesn’t care about you; He/she is arrogant and out of line. Don’t be discouraged. I recommend that you seek the support of a professor who respects you and can treat you as an equal…and that you demand that this professor validates his/her criticisms.
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“So I went to see my feminism professor”
LOL You are a loser.
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While this does not surprise me, it does disgust me. Academics are often people in boxes who have their own ideas and will listen to no others. They preach inclusion, differentiation and equality in their lessons, but follow exclusion, conformity and inequality in their own twisted minds. The worse thing is – they don’t even know they are doing it. Take this further. Do not allow it to stay as it is. You have been the victim of the ignorance of your prof.
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The only ignorance her is morons like you supporting a plagiarizing cunt.
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Bob, I find your use of the “C” word a bit redundant. If I were grading your writing, it would be an F-. You are on the wrong site. There must be a blog that supports ignorant, racist white guys named Bob.
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❤️
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Reblogged this on The Green Dog Chronicles. My Life in Navia and commented:
Too true… great read.
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I’m so sorry this happened an happens to you but don’t let ignorant people get you down. Success is the best antidote and you are and will be successful.
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