Name: Ayanna-Grace King
Class: 2018
Major: Gender Studies and Africana Studies
Pronouns: Any but mostly she/her/hers
Hometown: Bronx, NY
Trigger warning: Sexual assault
What would you like me to know about you?
First and foremost, I’m BlaQ. That is incredibly important to me because that intersectionality of identities controls the way I view the world and how the world views me. I am also an activist with a specific focus on the development and safety of Black Queer Womxn/girls. The “x” is there on purpose to be inclusive of womxn who are not cis and/or who do not relate to all the invisible/visible “requirements” of womanhood. I am a Gender Studies and Africana Studies double major. I am an abolitionist and I prefer a mixture of socialism and communism to what we have today.
What is it like being a student of color on campus?
I can’t speak for all students of color and every aspect of one’s narrative affects their comfort level on campus. Because of socioeconomic status, I am upper middle class and I grew up vacationing in the Hamptons and traveling the world so I am able to relate to and feel comfortable on that level with my white counterparts. Because of my sexuality – I identify as Queer – I am also able to relate and feel comfortable more so than other cis/heterosexual students of color with my white counterparts. However, because I am a person of color I also feel more alienated in these communities. I am constantly subjected to microaggression in the classroom, in the dining halls, in the dorms because the majority of Mount Holyoke is very European white cis male centered. In short, to be a student of color on campus is to be constantly subjected to violence against the spiritual and physical body just for a piece of paper that we cannot even read because it is written in Latin.
What are the courses like for black students trying to find out about themselves? Do you think MoHo or the Five College system does a good job at it?
Courses for Black students trying to find out about themselves are subpar. Again, as a BlaQ woman, Black and Queer, I often feel further alienated. In Africana Studies classes, we mostly focus on the cis/straight experience of what it means to be Black, which leaves my queerness in the dark. In Gender Studies courses, we focus on gender and sexuality and how the specific labels within those two identities affect our careers, our families, and our sense of self. However, race doesn’t come up as much or at all, so my ethnicity gets left in the dark. In reality, I cannot separate my queerness from my Blackness, but at MHC and Five College classrooms I am forced to do so which leaves me with narrowed understandings and incomplete pictures. MoHo does a horrible job at being inclusive. The first issue is that they do not require faculty members to go through sensitivity training, so already students walk into a classroom that may be extremely oppressive. On top of that, everything that I stated above happens.
What drew you to Mount Holyoke?
My aunt attended Mount Holyoke so I grew up around MoHos and I saw how intelligent, how comfortable, how brave and happy they were. When I was looking at colleges it was important for me to see how well and how happy people were 5, 10, 20 years after graduating. The supposed level of diversity and LGBTQ inclusivness were also extremely important to me. I knew that I wanted to come out in college so being in a place where I would be accepted on all fronts was vital.
I heard that you took some time off from school for awhile and then came back. Would you mind giving a little background information on this?
I took two years off on medical leave back in the fall of 2014. I have a long history of abuse that started before my time at Mount Holyoke. I was raped on campus the semester before and the lack of support I got from the school in combination with my past just sent me over the edge to the point where I just needed to go home.
What are you most passionate about?
I am most passionate about my BlaQ-ness. I find that being BlaQ is the most rewarding, beautiful, stressful, mentally straining, exciting thing to ever be. I wouldn’t trade it for the world and I plan on spending my life getting other people, especially other Black queer women, to see what I see when I look at myself and I look at my community.
What do you plan to major in? What led you to this conclusion?
As I stated before I am a Gender Studies and Africana Studies double major. I decided on Gender Studies because I believe that field is something that everyone should be a part of and be exposed to. It helps explain a lot of the oppressive structures that people experience through multiple venues. After taking one class during my first semester here at Mount Holyoke, I was hooked. It opened my eyes to the many ways people become complicit in oppressive structures and act, both on the conscious and subconscious level, in perpetuating the various violent structures that enable these oppressive institutions to exist i.e. being active in the perpetuation of rape culture which historically has its foot in the oppression of woman by alluding to this idea that men have this inherent sense of control and power that should not be challenged, especially by women. This is not to dismiss that rape is a human issue in which everyone regardless of race, ethnicity, language, immigration status, sexuality, and gender should be actively addressing and dismantling. I chose Africana Studies because in order to help my people I need to understand all the possible ways in which Blackness is experienced and oppressed. I chose to double major in both instead of doing a major and a minor because I am huge advocate for inclusiveness and intersectionality. Gender Studies and Africana studies are equally important and vital in helping liberate Black folk.
What are your hobbies?
My hobbies include reading, sports, and art. I mostly read historical fiction and old books on Black life to compare it to what I know now. I play rugby, but I’ve always played sports. My resume includes but it isn’t limited to track & field (short sprints, high jump and pole vaulting, soccer, fencing, volleyball and basketball). Art is another huge part of my life. When I say art, I am talking about music, painting, poetry, writing, dance. Art is a huge part of self care for me and many of my understandings of Blackness and life come through art.
What was the most difficult thing to get used to in college?
The one thing that I had to get used to and I am still adjusting to is being on my own. If I do not speak up for myself no one else will. If I do not voice any of the discrepancies that I may have with my advisor, my class, or my overall experience they will go unnoticed and unattended to.
What is your advice to younger college students on this journey?
My advice is to understand your worth. Ask and ask and ask and ask again. You need to milk the system of all of their resources. You should be able to get your money’s worth at the end of all of this. Mount Holyoke WILL figure out a way to get you to study abroad, finish your semester, get that internship, find that perfect advisor, etc. if and only if you press them for it.
Has college brought you to any belief systems that have given you strength?
I do not know if I can attribute my change in belief systems that give me strength to specifically Mount Holyoke. I think Mount Holyoke aided me in my belief systems but it was not the sole reason. I attribute my belief systems to the mixture of being a millennial, to being an activist, to living in the era of Trump, to coming from a home where Blackness is emphasized as well as being a MoHo who happens to be a Gender Studies and Africana Studies major and using what she learns to challenge herself and life around her. With that being said my beliefs have changed a lot and have given me a lot of strength. I was democratic when I first came here and now I am an abolitionist who leans heavily towards the left. I was bisexual and now I am Queer. I was Black and now I am BlaQ. These are labels that I learned in the outside world and confirmed in the classroom and vice-versa.
Any favorite places on campus for studying or relaxing?
My favorite place to study and relax is my room because it is my space and I can control the amount of oppression that goes in there. I cannot relax completely knowing that whiteness, heteronormativity and so on can walk through the door and belittle my sense of safety at any moment.
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