Page 8 The Skanner May 18, 2016
News
Photo Controversy Highlights Black Women in Long Gray Line
Errin Haines Whack
Associated Press
S
elf-expression
is
hardly a part of life
for cadets at the
United States Mili-
tary Academy.
So it was far from ordi-
nary when 16 black wom-
en put their own spin
on the traditional grad-
uation photo, hoisting
their fists in the air while
posing in their dress uni-
forms, swords at their
sides.
A
social
media
firestorm followed. So
did an internal inquiry
at the school.
Some viewed the ca-
dets’ pose as a gesture
of racial solidarity and
strength. Others ques-
tioned whether it was a
statement of support for
Black Lives Matter.
West Point officials de-
cided last week that the
photo was not politically
motivated and no pun-
ishment was warranted.
Still, that outcome left
some black female grad-
uates confused: Why
would anyone see con-
troversy in how those 16
women celebrated their
experience in the Long
Gray Line?
“When I saw it, I said,
‘I wish me and my class-
mates had taken a pic-
ture like that,’” said
Shalela Dowdy, a 2012
graduate and a friend
of some of the women
in the photograph. “But
something clicked in my
mind that not too many
people would be happy
about that picture. The
fist stands for unity and
solidarity, but some peo-
ple are going to take this
the wrong way.”
None of the 16 women
would agree to be inter-
viewed for this story.
Speaking through black
alumnae, they cited a
need to focus on their
graduation next Satur-
day, when Vice President
Joe Biden will give the
commencement address,
and life after West Point.
For some, that will mean
active duty service in the
Army. They will become
Army officers after leav-
ing the academy.
The picture was one of
several the women took
in their traditional dress
uniforms. A different
photo, without the raised
firsts, was tweeted by
the chairwoman of West
Point’s Board of Visitors.
Mary Tobin, who has
mentored other black
female cadets since grad-
uating in 2003, said few
are inclined to discuss
their experiences pub-
licly.
“To be a black woman at
West Point is essentially
to make a choice going
in ... that the majority of
the time, you can never
fully express your wom-
anhood or your black-
ness,” Tobin said. “We’re
told we’re all green. We
don’t ever talk about it,
because it’s hard enough
for everyone at West
Point to graduate.”
The cadets pictured are
joining a rare but proud
group of black women
who have broken barri-
ers on dual fronts at West
Point. In interviews with
The Associated Press,
black alumnae describe
a rewarding experience
with challenges that in-
cluded navigating racial
incidents.
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PHOTO TAKE FROM TWITTER VIA AP
West Point alumnae describe rewarding experience, but also challenges – including campus racism
This undated image taken from Twitter shows 16 black, female cadets in uniform with their fists raised
while posing for a photograph at the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. Self-expression is
hardly a part of life for cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point. So it was very out of
the ordinary when 16 black women put their own spin on the traditional graduation photo, and hoisted
their fists in the air while posing in their dress uniforms, swords at their sides, their faces both stoic and
smiling.
West Point went co-ed
in 1976. Four years lat-
er, there were 62 female
graduates. In that class
were the first black fe-
male graduates, Joy Dal-
las and Priscilla “Pat”
Walker Locke. West
Point has graduated 357
black women in its 114-
year history, and the
Class of 2016 includes 18
black women.
Blacks have contribut-
ed to West Point’s legacy
for centuries, from the
first African-American
cadet, Henry O. Flipper,
who graduated in 1877,
to 2nd Lt. Emily Perez, a
black woman who was
the first member of the
“Class of 9/11” to die in
combat, in 2006.
According to admis-
sions director Col. Deb-
orah McDonald, about
15,000 students apply
to West Point each year,
and about 9 percent en-
roll. There were 1,859
black applicants for
the incoming freshman
class, and 14 percent of
them were accepted, Mc-
Donald said.
West Point’s numbers
are mirrored at the oth-
er U.S. military service
academies. The Naval
Academy in Annapolis,
Maryland, counts 20
women who identify as
African-American in its
2016 graduating class
of 1,215. The Air Force
Academy in Colorado
Springs, Colorado, has
a graduating class of
827, of whom 11 are Afri-
can-American women.
The Coast Guard Acad-
emy, in New London,
Connecticut, didn’t have
a gender breakdown by
race, but said three stu-
dents identifying as Afri-
can-American are in the
graduating class of 186.
Once enrolled, stu-
dents are immersed in
a campus environment
that doesn’t focus on in-
dividuality, said Donald
Outing, West Point’s
chief diversity officer.
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