Wednesday, February 7, 2018 // The Statement
4B
An oral history of MiC
F
or
Michigan
in
Color’s
fourth
anniversary,
we
sat down with two of our
three co-founders — Kayla
Upadhyaya and Rima Fadhallah — to
discuss their lives after graduation, the
challenges they faced and their hopes
for the future of the section. Reflecting
on their time at MiC, the two were
confident in the platform they built.
However, they were still excited at all
the new updates since their departures.
From the “Off the Record” blog to the
MiC spiritwear to the new MiC desk
on the left side of the newsroom, the
section has grown immensely — and so
have our founders.
Kayla, now a writer in New York
City, never expected to be heavily
involved in journalism after leaving
college. However, after her experience
with MiC, she was able to translate
her newfound passions and skills
into a successful career in media. She
attributed her extensive preparation for
the industry to the innovative nature of
MiC. Currently, she enjoys a career in
pop culture as a TV critic and reporter
for Eatery NY.
When we asked Kayla to give some
advice she had for people of color
entering journalism, she told us it
comes down to finding the right
mentors. She actively sought ones
who shared a social identity with
her. As a result, her mentors were
able to offer specific advice because
they understood her situation. These
relationships eventually became so
strong that Kayla felt she wouldn’t be
in the position she is in today had she
not formed and embraced them, so
they gave her significant first-hand
experiences in navigating difficulties
in the workplace.
Rima, on the other hand, participated
in the Teach for America Program
after graduating in 2014. Outside of
work, she also started a blog called
The Road To. The goal was simple: to
promote positivity and goal setting.
The movement started when she used
the tag #RoadtoOctober to set a goal to
get healthier by her birthday. Others
quickly adopted that template, and
the brand spread. Rima credited this
success — both in teaching and online —
to MiC. Her reasoning was because this
space allowed her to get to know herself
as a writer and develop her identity as a
leader in a community of diverse people
who all wanted a common goal.
We also asked Rima for advice for
people of color entering education
(though she is currently applying for
MBA programs). She told us that as a
leader, “It’s important to learn how to
work with people and set aside your
anger and ego.” For her, she came to
this realization soon after joining TFA.
When
she
started
teaching
at
a
predominantly
Black
school
in
Detroit, she saw that the most of her
fellow teachers hailed from much
more affluent upbringings than their
students. As someone who grew up
in a predominantly Arab school with
white teachers who also didn’t share
her life experiences — and therefore
had trouble relating to her culture and
identity — Rima quickly realized the
need for teachers to empathize with
their students. She felt her impact would
be felt most if she worked within the
system and educated her co-workers on
approaching people of color and cultural
responsiveness.
This
realization
allowed her to impact her workplace
because it opened up previously closed
lines of communication between her,
her co-workers and the students they
served.
Before Kayla helped form MiC, she
was employed by The Daily as an arts
writer. In this capacity, she was able
to combine her interest in popular
culture with her growing passion
for writing. Though she was able to
gain valuable experience in the field
she’d eventually end up working in,
she recognized that The Daily’s work
environment was far from perfect. On
the other hand, Rima and Jerusaliem
(MiC’s third co-founder) were not
as involved with the paper before
forming the section.
Nevertheless,
Rima
still
felt
a
similar need to create a more inclusive
paper. Kayla, who had already been
writing for The Daily for a few years,
was focused on how to make existing
writers of color more comfortable in
the newsroom. Rima and Jerusaliem,
however, were more concerned with
recruiting students of color. After
realizing that both of these goals could
be achieved by working together, the
three went to Andrew Weiner, the
editor-in-chief in 2013.
This meeting with Andrew proved to
be the catalyst for the section’s creation.
MiC started as a simple column on the
opinion page. They didn’t have a desk
in the newsroom; they didn’t even
have a tab on the homepage. At the
time, that didn’t matter. As second-
semester seniors, their main concern
was building a strong foundation for
future editors of the section. However,
there were still many events on campus
the section covered.
According to Kayla and Rima, the
biggest issues MiC covered during her
time on The Daily was #UMDivest
and #BBUM. At the time in early
2014, #BBUM had gained traction the
preceding November, and the debate
over divestment began to roil campus.
Because of this, MiC was able to serve
as a platform for people to share their
perspectives on the issue. While before
MiC was founded, some groups may
not have felt comfortable voicing their
opinions in The Daily, Kayla believes
that
MiC
gave
these
historically
underrepresented groups a space on the
paper to express their opinions.
While this led to some unexpected
issues — primarily, the editors were
criticized for being overly partisan
in their coverage of the #UMDivest
movement
—
Kayla,
Rima
and
Jerusaliem’s resolve did not waver. In
Kayla’s words, it’s not MiC’s fault that
it became political. “People of color
often face this criticism, but it’s not our
fault that our entire existence has been
politicized,” Kayla told us. Additionally,
Rima told us that the section had trouble
gaining legitimacy in the newsroom.
Andrew even believed they wouldn’t be
able to find enough content. However,
after getting the green light, the pieces
started rolling in.
When we asked Kayla and Rima how
activism in MiC differs from activism in
other spaces, they had similar answers.
Kayla told us that, in her mind, there is
no difference in the types of activism.
“It’s just a different stage of activism,”
she said. Though when most people think
of activism they envision protests on the
street, that’s only the end stage. Before
people can take to the streets, they must
first address the issues from a personal
point of view. Rima largely agreed, “If
you look at history, writing has changed
so much,” she told us. “You have to realize
that writing in itself is resistance.”
Towards the end of our interview,
we asked Kayla and Rima what they
want MiC’s readers to know. Kayla told
us that she wants them to value the
diversity within the section and know
that one piece doesn’t — and couldn’t —
represent the experiences of all members
of that group. “It is most beneficial to
hold people’s multitudes in mind while
reading submissions,” she told us. “As
students of color have such a wide range
of perspectives and experiences that all
contribute to the vibrancy and dynamic
of MiC.”
We ended the interview by asking
for any advice for current and future
editors. Rima went first: “Block out
noise as much as you can and always
think about what’s best for the space.”
Kayla followed with, “Always think as
big as possible. So many of the goals
from our first year were thought to be
unachievable, but you’ve all been able
to accomplish so much more than
thought possible. Don’t limit yourself
or think this is something that won’t
happen. Always dream big.”
BY THE MICHIGAN IN COLOR EDITORS
Courtesy of MiC Founders
The founders of MiC, Rima Fadlallah, Jerusaliem Geb and Kayla Upadhyaya.