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MICHIGAN IN COLOR

A letter from the editors

As the summer comes to a close, 
and our time as Managing Editors 
is now complete, we would like to 
close off with a letter and a hope 
for MiC — an ode to a summer of 
revolution, if you will. Neither 
of us could have predicted what 
we signed up for, but we are more 
than proud of what we were able 
to accomplish. Thanks to a group 
of brilliant and talented writers 
and staff, we were able to pull off 
a summer of enlightening and edu-
cational series of writing which 
not only shared personal experi-
ences or reflections, but provided 
scholastic and experiential insight 
into the many departments and 
institutions that feed the Black 
and Indigenous plight in America 
— a truth that is often rejected and 
whose existence is perpetuated 
through journalism. Not only did 
we learn so much from our peers, 
but we are so grateful to have been 
given this opportunity to amplify 
issues in our country which have 
been occurring since the genesis 
of our nation, and which built the 
nation. These issues will persist 
until we confront them in every 
system through which we function 
— social, governmental, economic, 
etc. — we hold our peers account-
able for this same confrontation, 
actively educate ourselves on how 
these systems affect society at 
micro and macro levels and utilize 
that education to grow and change 
with an united front. 
Michigan in Color started out 
as a safe community exclusively 
for BIPOC to write and share their 

experiences at the University of 
Michigan and in the broad United 
States. We tried our best this sum-
mer to uphold MiC traditions while 
also adjusting to inevitable change 
and pursuing necessary actions as 
a section to carry on the change we 
instigated this summer. Before we 
give up our positions, we would like 
to remind others, especially at The 
Michigan Daily, that the sentiment 
of change which began this sum-
mer can not and should not stop 
here. The newspaper’s responsibili-
ty does not only rest in its published 
content, but in the team that they 
hire to write, edit and administrate 
that content for the paper. In all of 
our efforts to expand content and 
staff, we must be adamant about 
centering the Black and Indigenous 
voice — especially those of womxn. 
As the MiC section, we also want 
to hold each section accountable 
for this responsibility as individual 
groups — it is not enough to have 
Michigan in Color at the paper; 
this work must be demonstrated by 
each and every section at the paper. 
Simply put, MiC cannot and will 
not be your excuse or your teacher. 
We must treat MiC as an individual 
section which operates on our own 
basis. We are not diversity issue 

scapegoats and we must operate as 
a whole group to rectify our wrong-
doings for a greater future. 
But 
this 
conversation 
and 
demand 
for 
accountability 
is 
far greater than the paper — we 
would like to inspire a bigger call 
to action for our readers, as this 
time is one to take advantage of. 
We have sat comfortably for too 
long in great periods of perfor-
mative activism. As we continue 
to stand complacent in the visual 
apologies granted to us by large 
corporations and brand names who 
participate in oppressive systems, 
we ourselves perpetuate them and 
we ultimately oppress one another. 
Amidst this pandemic and simul-
taneous civil rights and liberation 
movements sprouting globally, we 
have been given the opportunity 
to demand more from ourselves, 
from one another and from those 
who puppeteer these systems. We 
encourage you to be intentional 
and reflective with each pursuit 
of activism you engage in: Is this 
truly the most beneficial way for 
you to wield your privilege and/or 
space for the liberation movement 
at hand? 

Bon Appétit: how racism 
hides behind the screen

On 
Thursday, 
popular 
food 
magazine Bon Appétit lost three 
employees of color as a result of 
racial discrimination in the work-
place and weeks of unsuccessful 
contract negotiations. The news 
comes two months after a 2013 
Instagram photo of Adam Rapo-
port, Bon Appétit’s former editor-
in-chief, in brownface resurfaced, 
which sparked criticism around 
the publication’s systemic racism 
and calls for Rapoport’s resigna-
tion by staffers. Soon after, the staff 
of the magazine posted a public 
statement on Instagram recog-
nizing their complicity in a racist 
workplace culture and planning to 
make change for their BIPOC staff-
ers as they “begin to dismantle rac-
ism.” 
With over 6 million Youtube 
subscribers, the Bon Appétit chan-
nel has amassed a large following 
— many of whom watch their Test 
Kitchen series featuring video con-
tributors of color Priya Krishna, 
Sohla El-Waylly and Rick Marti-
nez. Amidst the magazine’s dec-
laration in early June to instill an 
equitable work environment for 
BIPOC staffers, the three chefs 
went into weeks of contract negoti-
ations asking for compensation and 
video appearances equal to what 
the publication offered their white 
counterparts. However, Bon Appé-
tit and its parent company, Condé 
Nast, failed to meet their demands. 
El-Waylly, a Bengali-American 
assistant editor, publicly accused 
the magazine of only compensat-

JENNY CHONG
MiC Staff Writer

ing white editors who appear in 
the Test Kitchen videos and not the 
people of color. She also revealed 
that, even with over fifteen years 
of professional experience, she 
was making a salary of $50,000 
to assist white editors with much 
less experience. She believes she 
was “pushed in front of video as 
a display of diversity” and told 
BuzzFeed News how they asked 
her to stand in the background 
of photo shoots and video shoots 
amongst other exploitive measures 
for tasks she did not sign up nor get 
paid for. After speaking out about 
her mistreatment, she received 
a new contract offer on June 8, 
which included a raise but nothing 
close to the salary of her white co-
workers. Consequently, El-Waylly 
recently announced she would no 
longer be appearing in Bon Appétit 
videos but would still be contribut-
ing to the magazine’s recipes and 
articles. 
Krishna and Martinez report-
edly received offers on June 8, 
which would have guaranteed 10 
video appearances per year — sig-
nificantly less than their white 
co-workers, some of whom were 
guaranteed up to 60 appearances. 
Both refused to accept these offers. 
In a Twitter post, Krisha, an Indi-
an-American food writer, stated 
their diversity and equity plans 
were “all lip service” and said the 
contract would actually give her 
a lower wage than how much she 
currently earns. She also stated 
how non-white members...

Read more at michigandaily.com

CHERYN HONG & GABRIJELA 
SKOKO
MiC Managing Editors

Read more at michigandaily.com

Transitioning to college life as a POC

In exactly two weeks, I will 
have finished moving into my 
dorm room in Bursley Residence 
Hall, and my parents will have just 
given me a final goodbye hug. 
As each day passes and the 
beginning of my college life draws 
closer my anxiety-ridden thoughts 
are met with the realization that 
for the first time, I will have to 
function independently. I’ll no lon-
ger have to speed home with angst 
to meet curfew. Instead of sitting 
around the kitchen table in antici-
pation for my mom’s homemade 
tabouli and hummus, I’ll be using 
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my meal swipes at the dining hall. 
I’ll no longer have to begrudg-
ingly change my outfit before I 
leave the house. Soon, it will be 
completely up to me to make the 
decisions that ultimately represent 
who I am, and in turn, it will be 
up to me to uphold the values and 
standards that were taught to me 
in my ethnic household. 
In high school, I often struggled 
to find a cultural balance between 
my ethnic home life and my school 
life, and even then, I got to return 
home every afternoon. In two 
short weeks, I’ll no longer have 
this privilege, and I am still trying 
to grapple with my contradicting 

GRACE GARMO
MiC Staff Writer

feelings of unease and eagerness. 
Despite being physically distanced 
from my family, I am hopeful that 
I’ll still be able to recall their moral 
guidance while simultaneously 
developing my character and find-
ing myself in an overwhelmingly 
new environment. 
Initially, I perceived my family’s 
Middle Eastern values as a sort 
of setback when thinking about 
beginning college. I felt as though 
I had a reputation to uphold and 
the pressure to behave in which-
ever way would make my parents 
the happiest. 

 Design by Hibah Chughtai

Thursday, August 13, 2020
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

