A student at Syracuse University delivered a poignant speech on the experience of being a Black student in America. Jordan Pierre recently graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast and Digital Journalism and a minor in Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises.
During his graduation ceremony, he took the stage and delivered a commencement speech that garnered over a million views on TikTok.
“Today is much more significant because I come from a place where I’ve attended more funerals, court appearances than college graduations. To be here today is a barrier broken. I have my family in attendance today, and for many of them, this is the first time they have attended a college graduation,” Pierre said.
He highlighted that being a Black or brown student in America requires much more than academic excellence. Pierre pointed to Black students as having been the target of racist attacks and acts of intimidation. In 2019, fraternities were suspended at Syracuse University following a racist incident, reported NBC News. A year later, students held several protests to call out the administration for their response to repeated racist incidents, according to CNN.
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“It’s not the curriculum that makes these courses rigorous,” Pierre said. “It’s being a Black student in an educational system that justifies the admission of Black history through the use of the discomfort it causes our white counterparts when class discussions reveal the true history of theirs.”
He also pointed out inequalities that students of color are faced with such as being a first generation college student, having to work multiple jobs to be able to afford school, or not having anyone to turn to for guidance on how to navigate college.
“Some of us in this room understand first hand that the scholarship and financial aid we earned were not just funding us as students, they were funding a household in a community,” Pierre said.
Originally from Brooklyn, New York, Pierre has been involved in student life. He served as the president of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity’s Delta Zeta chapter and was a Global Ambassador for Syracuse Abroad.
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Although he has several achievements in the collegiate space, Pierre reminded the audience that being a Black student means having to hear about hate crimes on the news, citing the death of Jordan Neely and the mass shooting in Buffalo, NY.
He also mentioned the importance of representation and recognized the impact of his presence on stage.
“My presence today will stand as a symbol of inspiration for the Black people who hear this speech will be able to see themselves in a position I am in and aspire to do the same,” he added.
Pierre also advocated for the importance of telling the full story in the media and called on his peers to be mindful of the stereotypes being repeated.
“I challenge us all here today to denounce the stereotypes we have of one another, for the problems with stereotypes is not that they are untrue but incomplete,” he said.
