Myla Grace Barnett verbally committed to the University of Virginia’s women’s lacrosse team two years ago. The Baldwin School standout student-athlete, who plans a career in the legal profession, also plans to be a Wahoo next year. In spite of the recent, highly publicized and polarizing events on the university’s campus and throughout Charlottesville, her mother is sending her there, anyway.
“As a "D1 Mom" raising twin high school senior athletes, I found myself waking [up] at 3:33 AM as I considered the notion that one of my daughters had committed to play lacrosse at the University of Virginia,” said Jacqueline Jeffries Barnett, referencing Jay Z’s acclaimed album 4:44.
“Myla Grace was recruited to play lacrosse [at the University of Virginia] before her sophomore season. Hailey Grace on the other hand rowed there at a summer visit and both have excelled in their respective sports,” said Jeffries Barnett, an education consultant and former secretary of education for the City of Philadelphia.
“When White supremacist, decided to hold a vigil under the cloak of darkness, I considered the state of the union where my daughter will soon matriculate. Having recently walked the campus grounds, I was stunned.”
“I was reminded that Myla Grace was rather use to the stark difference she represents as a lacrosse player and how her father [Fred Barnett, former NFL Pro Bowler] and I have reared our girls to embrace difference and let ones gift and grit lead the way and perhaps find common ground.”
“Pricked by the unsettling and sheer magnitude of parenting and making choices that will do well by one's children,” Barnett consciously resisted the urge to “respond to the fear” of the domestic terrorism attack during a white nationalist rally not far from Thomas Jefferson’s iconic Charlottesville plantation.
Aiming to quash concerns of parents of perspective and current UVA students, more than 200 African-American UVA graduates mobilized and activated altruistically "to support the efforts in Charlottesville in order to strengthen the community that helped to shape our individual characters over the years."
“My first concern was to make sure these kids were safe and felt supported, to let students know that we’re here and we care,” Quentin Washington told HuffPost on Monday. Washington, who studied mechanical engineering, helped to craft a letter on behalf of concerned black alumni — UVA Black Alumni Family — addressed to the incoming Class of 2021.
It's important to note that while these events are egregious in nature they are not completely unprecedented. While attending a public university in the south, each of us as Black Alumni has experienced or witnessed racism and prejudice. We were able to triumph over each situation through the help of the University, alumni and most importantly, through our relationships with one another in a community filled with love and support. — UVA Black Alumni Family Open Letter to the Class of 2021
Condemning the white supremacist march and shedding light on racism, through the prism of an African-American in UVA’s environment, Washington and his fellow alumni — Cameron M. Webb and Gregory Jackson Jr. — led an organized effort to engage incoming freshman throughout move-in weekend.
“When parents realized we were alumni who were there to help, their guard went down,” Washington said. “We answered general questions students had and talked about our experiences.”
Alisia Daily condemned the weekend of hate and its actors, as a parent and as a graduate of UVA. Daily’s daughter, Siena Hart, began classes earlier this week.
“Like every parent, I want to know if my daughter and the students on campus will be safe,” Daily told NBCBLK. Watching coverage of the rally and protests on television in disbelief, Daily said “It felt surreal.”
Increasing its enrollment of African-American students by 45% over the past five years, African-American students now make up 8.5% of UVA undergraduates, according to Dr. Marcus Martin, a UVA vice president and chief officer for diversity and equity. Martin is tasked with upholding diversity and inclusion initiatives for all students at the university despite Charlottesville’s historical connections to the confederacy.
“I reminded them that often human rights movements and discord happens on college campuses,” said Jeffries Barnett, a classically trained ballet dancer.
“This is a unique moment in time to to have rich conversations and uncomfortable considerations as Americans struggle to reckon with past anti-Semitic, anti-Black, anti-other than White culture and consciousness,” she said.
Myla Grace will be one of the 3.9% of high school girls that will go on to compete in lacrosse at an NCAA Division I school, the fastest growing college team sport in the country. According to an annual participation report submitted by NCAA Research, 86.% of women playing college lacrosse were white in 2014-15, compared with 89.1% in 2000. The percentage of black women playing collegiate lacrosse has grown from 1.9% to 2.9%.
“With two girls of color who play ‘non-traditional’ sports, we look forward to new frontiers for their talent. We anticipate that they will work, run and leap to new heights,” said Jeffries Barnett.
As the University of Virginia and the City of Charlottesville face numerous challenges ahead, as do many of the nation’s higher education institutions and their respective communities, parents like Jeffries Barnett and their children must make life transforming decisions.
“We, as parents, will continue to rise to new levels of consciousness and create an atmosphere of excellence as we not only dare to parent,” said Jeffries Barnett, “but intentionally equip them to rise.”