{"id":17148,"date":"2022-01-14T20:22:23","date_gmt":"2022-01-14T20:22:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/marymount.edu\/academics\/?page_id=17148"},"modified":"2024-09-09T16:02:00","modified_gmt":"2024-09-09T20:02:00","slug":"racial-and-ethnic-diversity","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/marymount.edu\/academics\/marymount-global\/global-education-office\/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-in-study-abroad\/racial-and-ethnic-diversity\/","title":{"rendered":"Racial and Ethnic Diversity"},"content":{"rendered":"

You may be concerned about facing prejudice abroad in a new way without your usual support systems.\u00a0 Attitudes about race and ethnicity will vary country to country and even city to city and may be vastly different from what you are used to in the United States. We recommend doing research on your host country and city before going abroad to learn about the attitudes towards race and ethnicity in that area.<\/p>\n

Regardless of how you identify, there may be people who infer things about you based on your physical appearance. While you are abroad, some people may wrongly assume your ethnicity or may see you simply as an American student. Many people will be interested in learning more about your culture or your ethnicity with sincere interest, but there may also be instances where some behaviors may make you uncomfortable. People may ask to touch your skin or hair or ask insensitive questions about your heritage, culture, and physical features, especially if you are studying abroad in a location where people have had little or no contact with people of different races or ethnicities.<\/p>\n

Although you should be prepared if a situation arises, you should not go abroad expecting discrimination. Study abroad is a life-changing experience for students of diverse backgrounds where you will learn much about others and yourself, so do not let these limit your experiences.<\/p>\n

Some questions to help you prepare may be:<\/h3>\n