Stanford Sierra Camp is a family camp for Stanford alumni and their families, staffed by current Stanford students. Our community is made up of individuals from a variety of backgrounds, races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, majors, careers, interests, areas of the world, gender identities, socio-economic statuses, and life experiences.

As a summer camp...

The idea and original structure of summer camp is inherently rooted in privilege and white culture.

In order to be a guest, one needs the money, the cultural and economic capital, the cultural capital to know about camps, the privilege to take time out of work to attend camp, the privilege to feel comfortable around a space that is predominantly white families.

In order to work at a camp, one needs to have the economic and cultural assurance that either life pursuits do not necessarily need to depend on time spent working at a camp rather than other professional opportunities, or that the time spent working at a camp will pay off. For the latter, the individual will need to ask themselves out of necessity: Will this work lead to opportunities? Will this work pay enough? Will this work further one’s career? More often than not, the latter questions are asked by students who are low-income, representative of marginalized communities, first or second generation students, and/or people of color.

Our current guest population…

Our current guest population is composed of predominantly white families because our current guest population reflects Stanford alumni of 30 years ago. Stanford of 30 years ago lacked the diversity represented in today’s Stanford student body.

What can we do? Our guests and leaders can put in time and work to educate themselves on how to support and contribute to our efforts to cultivate a vibrant, diverse community by seeking to surround themselves with educational materials that elevate a wide range of opinions, cultures, perspectives, i.e. literature, podcasts, media, etc.

Our guests can expose their children to children’s books and other educational material on diverse topics, written by a variety of authors from different cultures, races, perspectives, experiences.

Our guests can help elevate our Stanford student community by offering mentorship, seeking to promote professional connections, actively seeking to engage and include new families, and genuinely getting to know our staph and fellow guests.

Our guests can familiarize themselves with staph Biosketches and use this resource in an effort to be less likely to mix up staphers.

Our guests can submit guest Biosketches to introduce themselves, invite connections, and promote an accessible community.

I have some ideas… Awesome! Feel encouraged to share your thoughts and ideas with us. You can reach out to us at Camp by calling (530) 541-1244.

“Diversity is being invited to the dance, inclusion is being asked to dance, belonging is choosing what kind of dance, equity is having a turn at picking the DJ.” via Dereca Blackmon, Former Exec Director, Inclusion & Diversity Education at Stanford

An acronym that stands for “Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.” While “people of color” has existed for quite some time, this new acronym aims to center the unique experiences of Black and Indigenous peoples. Explained in this New York Times article, “The other two letters, for Black and Indigenous, were included in the acronym to account for the erasure of Black people with darker skin and Native American people, according to Cynthia Frisby, a professor of strategic communication at the Missouri School of Journalism. ‘The Black and Indigenous was added to kind of make sure that it was inclusive,’ Ms. Frisby said. ‘I think the major purpose of that was for including voices that hadn’t originally been heard that they wanted to include in the narrative, darker skin, Blacks and Indigenous groups, so that they could make sure that all the skin shades are being represented.’

Formally, “brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioural, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative prejudicial slights and insults toward any group” - Chester M. Pierce, MD. Otherwise explained as, "brief, everyday exchanges that send denigrating messages to certain individuals because of their group membership" - Derald Wing Sue, PhD

“Microaggressions are often subtle, everyday exchanges that convey bias toward people based on race, gender identity, religion, age, ability, class, or membership to another group.” - Kevin Nadal

In an article for NPR, Kevin Nadal, explains that, “microaggressions are defined as the everyday, subtle, intentional — and oftentimes unintentional — interactions or behaviors that communicate some sort of bias toward historically marginalized groups. The difference between microaggressions and overt discrimination or macroaggressions, is that people who commit microagressions might not even be aware of them. Someone commenting on how well an Asian American speaks English, which presumes the Asian American was not born here, is one example of a microaggression. Presuming that a black person is dangerous or violent is another example. A common experience that black men talk about is being followed around in stores or getting on an elevator and having people move away and grab their purses or their wallets. Oftentimes, people don't even realize that they're doing those sorts of things. And in fact, if you were to stop them and say, 'Why did you just move?' They would deny it because they don't recognize that their behaviors communicate their racial biases.” Nadal adds that “research over the past 10 years has demonstrated microaggressions are related to a lot of different health and physical outcomes, including depression and anxiety, trauma, physical health issues, sleep issues, alcohol use, and body image issues.”

Microaggressions Matter by Simba Runyowa

Did you really just say that? Advice on confronting microaggressions

• One stapher/guest of color being mistaken for another stapher/guest of color.

• Assuming two staphers/guests of color are related.

• Assuming a stapher/guest of color is not from America.

• Assuming a stapher/guest of color is low-income.

• Assuming to know the class or socioeconomic status of an individual based on race.

• Assuming an International stapher/guest of color cannot speak English.

• Assuming to know the class or socioeconomic status of an International stapher/guest.

• Asking to touch a Black stapher’s or guest’s hair.

• Asking “where are you really from?”

• Saying that Native Americans do not exist; that Native Americans are extinct.

Microaggressions may be unintentional, driven by unconscious biases formed by social exposure or lack thereof, etc. with no malicious or willing intent to harm, but the impact can cause an individual to feel ‘other,’ less than, to not belong, and ultimately hurt someone and hurt their experience. One microaggression may be easy to brush off, but if we think of a microaggression as a pebble, each pebble, no matter how small, will weigh on an individual. Especially for our staphers of color, who are charged with meeting many new people each day of each week, for 12 weeks, microaggressions build and build with little avenue for release.

Take the time to reflect on and confront your own hesitancies, attitudes, stereotypes and expectations prior to entering the Camp space.

Engage in self-education rather than asking your fellow guests/staff of color to speak for the experience of an entire group of people.

Have open conversations with your family about discrimination and privilege, social justice, systems of oppression, and biases, no matter your background. This helps teach children early to celebrate and accept diversity, but at the same time make them aware that racism, sexism, ableism, and classism exists.

Coach children to express their curiosity in different ways and in appropriate contexts, i.e. instead of asking someone if you can touch their hair, tell them they have beautiful hair. People have many differences and they are beautiful.

Be a positive role model, in both action and rhetoric. We all make mistakes; acknowledging one’s own biases instead of pushing them away and encouraging correction, curiosity, and growth can promote self-awareness and personal growth.

Consider potential impact before you speak. Take care with your own rhetoric, while assuming best intent and extending generous assumptions of others’.

Microaggressions can have long-lasting effects. Here’s how to prevent them.

In a CBS News article, Professor Celeste Watkins-Hayes, an African American studies professor at Northwestern University, explains “‘part of what was stolen, when we think about slavery, when we think about colonization, was that lineage. [They are saying] 'I don't even feel comfortable claiming African, because I don't know the story of where my people have come from.’ ‘Black’ is often a better default that recognizes and celebrates the race, culture, and lived experiences of people all over the world. ‘The move that you see now towards black is really to recognize the global nature of blackness,’ Watkins-Hayes said. ‘So, I think that that is the more universal term.’ The recognition of a larger community of black people is also part of the rationale given for capitalizing the word. ‘It's recognizing the cultural and historical and social significance of black as a category, such that it deserves capitalization,’ Watkins-Hayes explained. But Watkins-Hayes adds that if someone wants to know for sure how a black person identifies, it's best to simply ask what their preference is. ‘It's an opportunity for conversation.’”

In the same article, Darien LaBeach, the director of diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy at the digital marketing agency Huge Inc., speaks on his experience being born in Jamaica and raised in the United States. “‘I am black, and within that, I am a Jamaican-born African American man, but I call myself and identify as black,’ he explained.’I have had to take on different identities at different periods of my life. But my blackness is the overarching umbrella of those different flavors of my identity.’ LaBeach's experience is just one example of the complexities of black identities, especially in the United States. Some people originally from other countries who live in the U.S. accept African American because of its cultural and historical roots in the black experience that is specific to this country. ‘African American technically isn't even what I am,’ he said. ‘I'm a Jamaican-born black person but I have taken on this label of African American because of where I live.’ These layers of racial identity can be extremely personal and nuanced. There are some Americans who identify as both, and some who prefer black over African American because they can't actually trace their lineage.

From the Blackburn Center, “gender pronouns are the words that an individual would like others to use when talking about them or to them. Everyone has pronouns. “He, him, his” and “she, her, hers” are most commonly used in our culture. However, people who are transgender or who do not conform to the male or female gender categories may choose to use pronouns that fall outside of those gender categorizations — like “they, them, theirs.” You can’t always tell what gender pronouns are appropriate just by looking at someone — and you should never assume a person’s pronouns by their appearance. If you haven’t ever had to worry about your pronouns, this issue may seem unimportant. This is an advantage for you: having a single and visible gender identity, and not having to think about how people will refer to you. For others, the use of gender pronouns is critical. If someone uses the wrong pronouns for them, they may feel invalidated and disrespected. People who fall outside of the commonly used gender categories have the burden of telling others what their pronouns are. This can be alienating, marking that person as different or ‘other.’

A simple solution to this issue is to make gender pronouns part of regular conversation. This can be as easy as adding your pronouns to your email signature, or sharing your pronouns when you introduce yourself to someone. By doing that, you normalize the process. For cisgender people — those whose gender identity matches the sex that they were assigned at birth — there is little risk in taking this step. Learning to share our pronouns is a vital aspect of building a more inclusive society. Transgender individuals and those who do not conform to the male or female gender categories often struggle when deciding to tell others their pronouns — or asking people to use them. When cisgender people take the lead in sharing their pronouns, it reduces the stigma associated with talking about gender pronouns. It also signals to others that you are an ally. Putting this into practice is easy. You can start by changing your email signature line to note your gender pronouns, and then do the same for your LinkedIn and social media profiles. Next, offer your pronouns to others when you first meet them. This can be as simple as saying, ‘Hi, I’m Mary — I use the pronouns she/her/hers.’ If you are introduced to someone and don’t know their gender pronouns, ask! ‘What are your pronouns’ is a direct way to make sure that you do not mis-gender anyone.”