Black (i)n White (Spaces)

This collection speaks to the experience of Black students at a PWI, and, in this case, specifically an Ivy League university.

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From the outset, Princeton University has been deeply tied to racism, exclusion, and white supremacy. The campus sits on the homelands of the Lenni-Lenape peoples, who are Indigenous to the Northeast region. Also, 16 out of the institution’s 23 founding trustees were slaveholders. Today, many of the campus buildings are named after these racist white men---including Stanhope Hall, shown in this collection, which was named after racist slaveholder Samuel Stanhope Smith. Stanhope Hall still stands on Princeton's campus today and formerly housed the African American Studies department.

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Princeton is not the only institution built on racism, however the university has a unique reach and impact, considering that it is known as the number one university in the United States and one of the most prestigious universities in the world due to its research contributions.

While Princeton now claims a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, much more work needs to be done. There needs to be institutional change rather than surface-level solutions.​ And increasing diversity is not the same as working toward anti-racism, exclusion, or decolonization. Read more about Princeton's "efforts" here.

 

Black (i)n White (Spaces) tells the story of being Black at Princeton University, a white institution. The title Black (i)n White (Spaces) is a reorientation and redefinition of the term "Black and White," referencing these photographs' black and white color.