So how does she proceed in that climate?
She has to MOVE FORWARD do whatever she wants and block out stupid people. No matter what she does there are always the crowd who'll say 'oh you got that because of affirmative action'. For some, no matter what black people do it'll never good enough for whites. That's such an easy out for people. AND AND AND stay away from the black student union. Those people can be poisonous to your mental health.
>>So how does she proceed in that climate?<<
Just the way she has. As a Strong Black Woman with a mission!! God love her!
She has a tough road and sounds like her family is behind her (and most probably her church). She will be fine.
The problem is that so many more girls may not be this strong. They may fall into the trap. I wish I had the solution.
Courage. This kid is going places.
Continue to excel. It doesn't matter whether it's high school, college or the workplace. If she keeps the focus on the task to be done, and not on what others may think of her (e.g., in high school = "Oreo," in college and the workplace = "affirmative action baby"), she'll be just fine.
This is EXACTLY what Bill Cosby has been attempting to address to his community. Even though it's a cliche- it bears repeating how significant pressure from one's peers is in grades 1-12.
All it would take for the trend to change is a few young black musician "stars" to start talking about learning as cool...