AHANA Has Many Definitions

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the AHANA acronym, which was introduced in 1979 to replace the word "minority" in the Office of Minority Student Affairs. Since its inception 30 years ago, the prevalence and use of the AHANA acronym has grown. The composition and climate of campus have changed through the years, and there now are varied understandings of the meaning of the term today. As the University continues to grow more diverse, the meaning of AHANA is being reexamined and reevaluated.

The origins of the AHANA acronym

Ten years before the AHANA acronym was created, the country was in the midst of a period of social unrest and heightened racial tensions. While the civil rights movement pushed the nation toward change, BC lagged behind in opening its doors. In 1968, only 13 students out of 6,975 undergraduate students were black. In response to this, as well as to a letter from Pedro Arrupe, S.J. urging institutions of higher education to assist black students in meeting entrance requirements, BC began its Black Talent program in 1968. This program, which had evolved from its initial title of Negro Talent Search, began to recruit and offer scholarships to black students. By 1970, the program was completely under the control of students, who acted as administrators, admitted students, and gave out scholarships. For six years, the Black Talent program acted as a separate, student-run admissions program, until 1976 when it returned under administrative control and its name was changed to the Office of Minority Student Affairs to reflect its expanded focus on Asian and Hispanic students. Donald Brown, who was director of the Office of Minority Student Affairs at the time, was charged with the task of increasing retention and graduation rates, particularly for black students. He said that, at the time, the graduation rate was only 17 percent. It wasn't that the resources weren't available, he said; rather, students were not taking advantage of the services. "One of the things that happened was that when the term 'minority' was in the fore, students would, rather than find their way to the office, go in the opposite direction because they did not want to be associated with the term minority. The term minority again conjured up thoughts of being 'less than,'" Brown said. In 1979, two student leaders, Valerie Lewis, BC '79, and Alfred Feliciano, BC '81, offered a solution. Originally creating the acronym "AHA," meaning students of African-American, Hispanic, and Asian descent, Lewis then realized the term could be used in a negative way as the "AHAs," she has told reporters. The students then expanded the acronym to include Native Americans, and the AHANA acronym was born. The students petitioned the board of trustees, and the Office of Minority Student Affairs was officially changed to the Office of AHANA Student Programs (OASP). "The students began coming in because they rallied around the term," Brown said. At the time, 687 students out of 10,185 full- and part-time undergraduates then fell under the AHANA acronym, according to the Boston College 1979 Factbook. Brown said students began to utilize the office, and graduation and retention rates began to increase. "They felt a sense of pride that they established this term called AHANA. They defined themselves rather than being defined from others," Brown said. The University has since trademarked the AHANA acronym, and today over 50 universities officially use the AHANA acronym, or a variation, the ALANA acronym.

The acronym now

Thirty years later, the political and social climate of the United States generally, and BC specifically, has changed. Currently, the BC Factbook reports that 499 African-American, 23 Native American, 858 Asian, and 693 Hispanic students are enrolled in the University this year. AHANA undergraduate students comprise nearly one-quarter of the student population. While the term AHANA still exists as an acronym representing these four groups, some have said that the spectrum of students it encompasses may have changed since its inception. Ines Maturana Sendoya, director of OASP, said that through the years, the definition of AHANA has remained the same, as a term that calls for solidarity of people of different ethnicities and cultures. "I would define it as a concept that includes people of color and people who are in solidarity with people of color and their causes and their struggles," Sendoya said. While the meaning of AHANA hasn't changed, she said, the University's demographic, as well as the general level of diversity in the country, has changed. "When this acronym was created in the 1970s, populations were more defined. Since then, the population has become more diverse," she said. Students who not identify themselves with those four categories, or who identify themselves as bi-racial or multi-racial, are increasingly prevalent, Sendoya said. Individuals are increasingly falling into the category of "other." "It's self-identification. Someone might say, 'I'm not in any of these categories that people created in this country; I'm not from this country.' They'll say 'I'm not white, but I'm not black,'" Sendoya said. As the student body becomes increasingly diverse, some students who might identify their heritage as originating from outside of the four AHANA designations may still identify themselves as AHANA, said Gabe Verdaguer, assistant director of First Year Experience (FYE) and BC '03. "For some that would technically fall under the AHANA acronym, they might not want to be associated with the acronym. Then there are some students who eventually come to love it with a passion and say, 'I may not get the strict definition, but I do appreciate and value the sense of community that comes with it,'" Verdaguer said. Verdaguer, who came to the United States from Argentina when he was 9 years old, said that one of the first things he did upon arriving on BC's campus his freshman year was to visit the Office of the AHANA Student Programs. "Growing up in the U.S., I felt a natural connection to people who would be considered of AHANA descent," he said. "I think it's because I'm a foreigner - I mean, I'm white in terms of race, but my ethnicity is different." While Verdaguer's ethnicity is included in the original AHANA acronym, he said that not all ethnicities fall within the strict definition. "Within the AHANA acronym you have most ethnicities, and it doesn't encompass all the ethnic groups at BC," Verdaguer said. According to the OASP Web site, certain places of origin might lie outside the typical descriptors of each letter of the acronym. George Somi, president of the Arab Students Association and the Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Association and A&S '10, said that while technically Arab students are Western Asian, often they consider themselves to be Middle Eastern. In practice, the term "Asian" is not typically used to describe individuals of Arab, Turkish, Iranian, Kurdish, or Pacific Island descent, according to the OASP Web site. "I think we're in a unique position. We're technically white but because Middle Easterners face somewhat of a disadvantage, let's say, particularly after 9/11. We can say we're white but at the same time we can say, 'We're in a category of our own,'" Somi said. "Some people do say we should be a part of AHANA, and some do not." While Somi prefers to label himself as a "citizen of the world," he said he does appreciate AHANA as a term that is inclusive and celebrates diversity while recognizing our history as a country. "The great thing about AHANA is that it takes such diverse people and everyone unites. You can see all the diverse gifts everyone has to offer, and together it's something pretty powerful," Somi said. Ebram Megally, A&S '11, said that while he is not included in the strict definition of AHANA, he does identify himself as AHANA. Megally moved from Egypt to the United States when he was 5 years old. He would not be considered an African-American, though he is from Africa, because he is not a black American of African descent, as per the definition on the OASP Web site. He also does not consider himself to be Arab. "Whenever I have the option on any standardized test, I always put down 'Other - Egyptian,'" Megally said. "I would definitely consider myself AHANA. It's tough because I don't think I've ever contemplated the definition of AHANA before - I know what the acronym is, but I think it stands for something more general than that." When asked what students fall under the AHANA descriptor, Earl Edwards, president of the AHANA Leadership Council and A&S '10, said that he would no longer divide the term into its acronym. "I think we are beyond breaking it down into groups. AHANA was coined because those were the people of color on campus. It's inclusive to anyone for people of color who are minorities," Edwards said. Somi said he agreed that the meaning of AHANA has broadened. "I would venture that for many people, AHANA is no longer an acronym, but a word unto itself with its own meaning," he said. "[But] we're all color; there's no uncolored race." For Feiyang Chen, co-director of the AHANA Caucus and A&S '10, AHANA can be interpreted strictly or more broadly. "There are two sides to it. AHANA by itself - it's a pure acronym denoting African American, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American. But for me, I see it as something that includes everyone on campus and that everyone can be a part of. I see it as something very American," Chen said. Still, pinpointing who is exactly included in the term AHANA and how it should be defined can be difficult, Megally said. "That's the thing about describing this - you have to pick out all the right terms so you don't offend anyone or exclude anyone," Megally said. "I don't think it's a huge necessity to say exactly what AHANA means. As soon as you are very particular about what it means, you start being exclusive." Some students do feel excluded by the acronym or misunderstand it, Chen said, and that there can be somewhat of a divide, particularly if students forget the origins of the term. Al Dea, president of the Undergraduate Government of BC and CSOM '09, said that he understood that some people might feel alienated by term, but that the term is meant to be positive and inclusive. "I can certainly understand people who would think that the term is exclusive, and I think that from their perspective it's a fair concern, but I think that it's just a choice that people make to identify with and to uplift themselves - and I don't think that's a bad thing," Dea said. "As long as you are not using it to put yourself above other people, then I think that's OK." Megally said that, while it is difficult to produce an exact definition of AHANA, the easiest way to define it is to say that AHANA is a collective body that embraces racial and ethnic differences. "I don't want to say 'it represents non-white people.' I don't think that's what it means," Megally said. "I think that's why people struggle to define the term because they don't want to offend a particular group, but I think people understand anyway. I think maybe that's the beauty of the acronym." Verdaguer said that is why he loved the 30th anniversary logo "AHANA: more than an acronym." "There is an understanding that it has a root and a history, but the slogan underneath says, 'we understand it's not fitting exactly anymore in this age of globalization.' It's not just about the acronym, but about a lot more than that," Verdaguer said.