How does it feel to be a problem: tokenization of black women student affair professionals in white academic spaces

Abstract

In this article, the author argues that Black women have experienced heightened levels of tokenism and hypervisibility since the 2016 election. By engaging with Black Feminist Theory and Kanter’s tokenism framework, the author outlines how tokenism impacts the esteem and well-being of Black women student affairs professionals. More specifically, this study examines how tokenism is used to contain stereotypes, using Black energy, identities, and painful experiences for institutional gain and social justice mirage. The author contends that Black women have been tokenized in the following themes: a single expert on Blackness, an ideal worker or placeholder for diversity initiatives, and an agenda keeper to sustain the white agenda. This article concludes with a reflection on what white academic spaces should consider implementing to welcome Black women’s voices and presence while dismantling embedded racism.