A DREAM DEFERRED BUT NOT DENIED

BY DR. ROSLYN CLARK ARTIS

This is a beautiful time of the year, particularly on the campuses of our nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Excitement is in the air as perspective graduates receive their caps and gowns and begin making preparations for the moment they and their families have long dreamed of – commencement!

At Benedict College, nearly 300 seniors who satisfied their degree requirements in December and May, readied themselves to march across the stage and receive the coveted diplomas that symbolize the achievement of their academic goals. Photo shoots were scheduled; announcements/invitations were ordered; and travel arrangements were booked. And then it happened…Covid-19, an international pandemic, hit the United States and forced colleges and universities around the country to evacuate their campuses and close their doors. Social distancing has become more than a catch phrase – it is our “new normal,” requiring campus leaders to postpone, and in some cases cancel, traditional May commencements in favor of “virtual commencement ceremonies.”

As I reflected on our decision to postpone Benedict College’s May 9, 2020 commencement to August 8, 2020, it occurred to me that while not cancelled, the graduation delay represents a dream deferred for Benedict graduates. The poem, “Dream Deferred,” byLangston Hughes, is a seminal work that poses the question of what happens when a dream is deferred. As a black man in America during the early 1900s, Hughes understood that deferred dreams often became nightmares for black people in a country that refused to accept their humanity and universally labeled them inferior solely by virtue of the color of their skin. Reduced to back-breaking manual labor, entrepreneurship was ARTIS difficult to dream and virtually impossible to realize. Moreover, as a result of inferior schools, that most black children were only

permitted to attend part time, high school completion was a rarity. Collegiate education was a dream realized by a precious few African Americans.

There is an old saying that “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” Such is the case for many African Americans today. Primary and secondary educational opportunities are often vastly different, and largely inferior, in zip codes populated by people of color. Further, lack of access to capital often creates an insurmountable barrier to entrepreneurship. Despite these challenges, Historically Black Colleges and Universities continue to stand in the gap and level the playing field for a diverse group of students. These venerable institutions provide opportunities for tenacious scholars to develop the skills necessary to compete in our 21st century workforce as highly skilled employees. Additionally, for aspiring entrepreneurs, HBCUs provide students with the technical competencies they need to create jobs in the new economy.

The postponed commencement is a dream deferred for our students. However, unlike a raisin in the sun, which dries up; a sore that festers and runs; meat that rots and stinks; sweets that crust over; a heavy load that sags; or a bomb that simply explodes, this dream will come true! The pomp and circumstance will

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be delayed. The diplomas are on hold. The travel plans are rescheduled. The long-anticipated commencement ceremonies

will be deferred, but the dreams of our students will not be denied! We will rise again, like a phoenix from the ash. The speeches will be delivered, the faculty will process, and the graduates will don their regalia and cross the stage. The hardearned degrees will be conferred. Commencement is a dream deferred, not denied. The dream will come true…just a little bit later this year!

Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up Like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore-- And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over-- like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?