"Black academics expected to ‘entertain’ when presenting, new study says"

"Thirty-three African American faculty members from institutions across the country were surveyed on their personal experiences, providing a unique perspective on “presenting while black.”...

Interviews with the scholars revealed that an overwhelming majority were advised regularly by white peers to be “more entertaining” when making research presentations, as well as to “lighten up” and “tell more jokes.”...

For any academic, presenting their research to peers can open doors to departmental collaborations, research funding opportunities and job offers. They must present effectively and persuasively to stand out from the crowd. But scholars of color face additional hurdles for acceptance that range from microaggressions to outright racism. Faced with “racial battle fatigue,” many try to change who they are in order to fit in, or simply give up and change careers."
http://news.vanderbilt.edu/2015/08/black-academics-expected-to-entertain-when-presenting-new-study-says/

#exhausting.

But I love the term at the end, "minoritized". I have so many feelings about the term 'minority', it just feels like it labels a whole set of identifies as absolutely minority positions; it feels like a word that is used because it is more comfortable than other terms (for white people) and not because it's actually useful. But, like, ya, forces in the world PUT me in the minority - not my racial/ethnic identity.