CSHPE doctoral candidate Kamaria Porter publishes essay as part of a series curated by the National Center for Institutional Diversity 

CSHPE doctoral candidate Kamaria Porter’s dissertation explores Black women and non-binary students’ experiences with unwanted sex and assault on campus. Her essay for NCID, Sexual Harassment is a Form of Racial Trauma for Black Women and Non-Binary Students, draws on the 46 narrative interviews conducted with Black women and non-binary students for the Speaking Into Silence research project.

“Sexual harassment is a form of racial trauma for Black women and non-binary students,” writes Porter. “By taking racialized sexual harassment seriously, we can create safer campus environments. Universities lack policies that can attend to the unique combination of racialized sexual harassment. Institutions tend to separate resources for racial bias from sexual misconduct procedures. In order to make our campuses equitable, leaders need to attend to racialized sexual harassment on campuses to prevent harm and promote Black women’s educational and professional thriving.”

The Spark series for NCID is curated by Elizabeth R. Cole, professor of Women’s and Gender Studies, Psychology, and Afroamerican and African Studies at U-M. Cole introduces Porter and her fellow contributors’ work in an article titled Understanding Sexual Harassment through an Anti-Racist Lens.