1. Well for starters, even if you were the only black student in the classroom, there were black student associations you could join school-wide.
2. The only thing that sucked was the division between African and Caribbean students.
3. But let's be honest: We always had the most fun when we came together.
4. It was pretty funny when some small-town folks thought that, by default, we were a lot cooler.
5. Once you got to your first class, you automatically scanned the room to see if any other black people were there.
6. Although sometimes it backfired if your professor or peers mistook you for the only other black kid in class.
But nothing was worse than if you took English classes...
7. Because some white professors were waaaaaay too comfortable reciting every racial slur from literature you were studying.
8. Then, of course, everyone else in the class got awkward. Sometimes they'd even turn around and gawk at you.
9. If you had a traditionally African name, your classmates rarely spelled it correctly during group assignments.
10. Then you got hit with the inevitable question:
11. It was fine, though. Because everyone kept reminding you that "there's no such thing as racism in Canada."
12. Except for that one time you got called the N-word after passing students outside of a kegger at 2 a.m.
13. Or when people dressed up in blackface on Halloween.
.@BrockBUSU @BrockUniversity Is it true these students were awarded $500 for best costume? #BrockU #blackface
Which apparently was totally okay.
Meanwhile, outside of the classroom....
14. You've heard this: "You know, I've never been with a black girl/ boy before..."
15. But the best was when you got called "an African-American" when your non-black friends were making a solid effort to be polite and PC.
16. Or when people asked how you felt about Barack Obama becoming "our" president.
Stephen, Stephen Harper is OUR Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER!
17. When Miley Cyrus "discovered" twerking, you were asked to become the go-to twerking professor.
18. But even though there were a few days when you were just over it...
19. You, truly, wouldn't have changed your university experience for the world.
