Interview with Amayrani Chávez
Dublin Core
Title
Interview with Amayrani Chávez
Date
4/15/21
Rights
Creative Commons Attribution--Non-Commercial
Language
English
Coverage
2017-2020
Oral History Item Type Metadata
Interviewer
Michelle Farias-Maldonado and Avier Doss
Interviewee
Amayrani (Rani) Chávez
Location
Zoom
Original Format
Zoom
Duration
00:53:07
Time Summary
00:04:17 – Amayrani joins, we all exchange greetings
00:05:20 – Avier beings the interview with introduction
00:06:38 – Amayrani introduces herself as Rani and states she’s from East Palo Alto
00:07:20 – Rani explains her timeline is all over the place
00:07:36 – She places big emphasis on pronouns, if she uses “I” pronouns she means “we”; it was
a whole community effort
00:08:35 – She didn’t know what ethnic studies was when she first came into Gonzaga; there was
no program established when she started her freshman year
00:09:13 – Caleb Dawson, GSBA President 2016-2017, organized a group of students to figure out
how to get an ethnic studies program at Gonzaga
00:10:12 – She went to the meetings at first but since she was in a leadership position in a cultural
club, she did not have a lot of time to attend the meetings, but she did have friends who stuck with
it
00:10:29 – Professors such as Dr. Maucione helped the students start formatting a proposal; Dr.
Maucione helped get the Native Studies program started
00:11:04 – She emphasized how messed up it was that it was students who had to build the
proposals
00:11:40 – The meetings kind of stopped when the Where Were You When video came out
00:12:03 – Rani was not involved in the Where Were You When video in any way, but a lot of her
friends were involved; the video talks about the Gonzaga Mission Statement and calls out
administrators for not dealing with microaggressions in the classroom and on campus
00:12:40 – The Where Were You When video was meant to stay in the Gonzaga community but
somehow was sent to the President of the College Republicans at Washington State University
who made a response video diminishing everyone’s experiences
00:13:34 – A group of Gonzaga students of color and student activists met up and discussed ways
they could move past the traumatic incident; this started the Concerned Students group
00:14:25 – After the response video, the Concerned Students group got together and wrote a letter
to admin at Gonzaga with demands. Rani was unsure of specific demands, knew there was
something to do with increasing staff of color, providing more support for students, more resources
to UMEC. All this was around May 2017
00:15:08 – Student activism on campus usually happens at the end of the year, the summer is for
meetings, then another event happens, and it is a cycle that continues
00:15:45 – After the Where Were You When stuff there was a new rise in student activism, but
things died down afterwards
00:16:25 – A couple months later, Rani and her old roommate met Giselle and Monica, who
graduated Gonzaga around 2010, through Caleb Dawson during the Gonzaga Alumni Weekend.
She noticed Giselle and Monica’s experiences were the same as Rani and her friends’ experiences
as students of color on campus, also a lot of student labor to support underrepresented students
00:17:55 – 00:18:01 – “if we’re talking off-script, like, y’all are probably going through the same
thing too!”
00:18:01 – That meeting motivated Rani to write her own letter to the editor in the Bulletin. Her
letter talks about how much it sucks that students of color have to put in labor to support other
students of color
00:19:20 – Her letter got a good reaction, other students started writing their own letters to the
editor about their experiences as underrepresented students
00:19:47 – Michael Larson created a documentary called Zag Stories that highlighted student of
color experiences with racism at Gonzaga
00:21:15 – There was a hangout with some GU alumni and some current GU students where a
walkout was mentioned but was not taken too seriously
00:21:50 – Rani graduated December 2018; the walkout happened November 2018
00:22:59 – “Ethnic studies, in its core, it’s for people of color” to learn about their own histories
outside of the Eurocentric narrative
00:23:17 – Rani’s friends were also leaders in culture clubs, and they would have conversations
where they realize they are trying to create a space that affirms students that fall within that
identity, but they also need to do additional education for the Gonzaga community; there’s never
anything solely for students of color to affirm them and give them their own space
00:24:14 – A big demand for ethnic studies was to create a space for students of color to learn
about their own histories outside of a Eurocentric lens and in a positive light; classes where
students could be affirmed
00:26:12 – Rani was not able to attend any CRES classes since the program was started Fall 2019
and she graduated December 2018, but she worked at Gonzaga in UMEC for a year where she
convinced incoming students to take CRES classes
00:27:33 – There’s a lot of pressure on the CRES department to make sure it is being run right
since there is only two faculty, but it’s better than nothing; the students she has talked to have had
positive experiences and enjoy the CRES classes
00:29:05 – Rani is curious about the number of white people in CRES classes, Avier informs her
the number is very low, she doesn’t see that as a bad thing
00:30:50 – Going into her last semester, she was going to be really lowkey about it and stay out of
things but then heard rumors about the restructuring of Gonzaga and the UMEC program
00:31:17 – 00:32:08--Redacted
00:32:09—Rumors regarding restructuring of key student affairs units
00:34:30 – Rani reached out to the Concerned Students group about the potential for a walkout to
protest the possible restructuring of Gonzaga
00:35:58 – When planning the demonstration, one of the demands was for the university to not do
a restructuring, the other demand was the creation of an Ethnic Studies program; lots of different
clubs came together to organize the walkout, too many past failed attempts because their
movements were not centralized so it was important that they rally together
00:37:31 – The walkout was planned for a Friday afternoon right before the lunch hour; it started
on the fourth floor of College Hall, students would do the chants then go down each floor
collecting more students from classes
00:38:20 – Students would read letters to the editor during the walkout; Ronnie Estoque did
research in archives from the Bulletin, found a bunch of letters from years ago
00:39:17 – After the walkout there were meetings with Thayne, other admin, and deans from other
schools; this brought the creation of the Ethnic Studies program at Gonzaga
00:40:41 – Reiteration that ethnic studies is history for people of color and marginalized people;
other Gonzaga classes are very Eurocentric and taught through white supremacist lenses; ethnic
studies was created in a way to counteract that and uplift marginalized voices and communities
00:42:42 – Rani hopes that CRES won’t just be a minor in the future, hopefully it will be a major
and have its own department; during the first meetings to start the program there was a huge
emphasis on CRES program and not CRES minor otherwise it would never develop past a minor
00:43:29 – Hopes that the narrative that CRES was a collective, intergenerational, student-led
effort does not leave and that admin does not take credit for this
00:44:34 – When she was a student, she believed CRES should have been mandatory but no longer
believes that because the experience could be ruined for students who want to be there by students
who don’t; should be a safe place for students of color
00:45:45 – Rani asks who else we are interviewing, we inform her of some other people
00:46:50 – Rani asks us some questions about our experiences in CRES classes, some more info
on CRES 499, and what our satisfaction is with our current CRES department
00:50:34 – Rani expresses her gratefulness at being able to see some of the fruits of her labor and
getting to talk to Dr. Calafell and Dr. Dame-Griff
00:52:20 – Avier thanks our interviewee and gives her information on the final project
00:05:20 – Avier beings the interview with introduction
00:06:38 – Amayrani introduces herself as Rani and states she’s from East Palo Alto
00:07:20 – Rani explains her timeline is all over the place
00:07:36 – She places big emphasis on pronouns, if she uses “I” pronouns she means “we”; it was
a whole community effort
00:08:35 – She didn’t know what ethnic studies was when she first came into Gonzaga; there was
no program established when she started her freshman year
00:09:13 – Caleb Dawson, GSBA President 2016-2017, organized a group of students to figure out
how to get an ethnic studies program at Gonzaga
00:10:12 – She went to the meetings at first but since she was in a leadership position in a cultural
club, she did not have a lot of time to attend the meetings, but she did have friends who stuck with
it
00:10:29 – Professors such as Dr. Maucione helped the students start formatting a proposal; Dr.
Maucione helped get the Native Studies program started
00:11:04 – She emphasized how messed up it was that it was students who had to build the
proposals
00:11:40 – The meetings kind of stopped when the Where Were You When video came out
00:12:03 – Rani was not involved in the Where Were You When video in any way, but a lot of her
friends were involved; the video talks about the Gonzaga Mission Statement and calls out
administrators for not dealing with microaggressions in the classroom and on campus
00:12:40 – The Where Were You When video was meant to stay in the Gonzaga community but
somehow was sent to the President of the College Republicans at Washington State University
who made a response video diminishing everyone’s experiences
00:13:34 – A group of Gonzaga students of color and student activists met up and discussed ways
they could move past the traumatic incident; this started the Concerned Students group
00:14:25 – After the response video, the Concerned Students group got together and wrote a letter
to admin at Gonzaga with demands. Rani was unsure of specific demands, knew there was
something to do with increasing staff of color, providing more support for students, more resources
to UMEC. All this was around May 2017
00:15:08 – Student activism on campus usually happens at the end of the year, the summer is for
meetings, then another event happens, and it is a cycle that continues
00:15:45 – After the Where Were You When stuff there was a new rise in student activism, but
things died down afterwards
00:16:25 – A couple months later, Rani and her old roommate met Giselle and Monica, who
graduated Gonzaga around 2010, through Caleb Dawson during the Gonzaga Alumni Weekend.
She noticed Giselle and Monica’s experiences were the same as Rani and her friends’ experiences
as students of color on campus, also a lot of student labor to support underrepresented students
00:17:55 – 00:18:01 – “if we’re talking off-script, like, y’all are probably going through the same
thing too!”
00:18:01 – That meeting motivated Rani to write her own letter to the editor in the Bulletin. Her
letter talks about how much it sucks that students of color have to put in labor to support other
students of color
00:19:20 – Her letter got a good reaction, other students started writing their own letters to the
editor about their experiences as underrepresented students
00:19:47 – Michael Larson created a documentary called Zag Stories that highlighted student of
color experiences with racism at Gonzaga
00:21:15 – There was a hangout with some GU alumni and some current GU students where a
walkout was mentioned but was not taken too seriously
00:21:50 – Rani graduated December 2018; the walkout happened November 2018
00:22:59 – “Ethnic studies, in its core, it’s for people of color” to learn about their own histories
outside of the Eurocentric narrative
00:23:17 – Rani’s friends were also leaders in culture clubs, and they would have conversations
where they realize they are trying to create a space that affirms students that fall within that
identity, but they also need to do additional education for the Gonzaga community; there’s never
anything solely for students of color to affirm them and give them their own space
00:24:14 – A big demand for ethnic studies was to create a space for students of color to learn
about their own histories outside of a Eurocentric lens and in a positive light; classes where
students could be affirmed
00:26:12 – Rani was not able to attend any CRES classes since the program was started Fall 2019
and she graduated December 2018, but she worked at Gonzaga in UMEC for a year where she
convinced incoming students to take CRES classes
00:27:33 – There’s a lot of pressure on the CRES department to make sure it is being run right
since there is only two faculty, but it’s better than nothing; the students she has talked to have had
positive experiences and enjoy the CRES classes
00:29:05 – Rani is curious about the number of white people in CRES classes, Avier informs her
the number is very low, she doesn’t see that as a bad thing
00:30:50 – Going into her last semester, she was going to be really lowkey about it and stay out of
things but then heard rumors about the restructuring of Gonzaga and the UMEC program
00:31:17 – 00:32:08--Redacted
00:32:09—Rumors regarding restructuring of key student affairs units
00:34:30 – Rani reached out to the Concerned Students group about the potential for a walkout to
protest the possible restructuring of Gonzaga
00:35:58 – When planning the demonstration, one of the demands was for the university to not do
a restructuring, the other demand was the creation of an Ethnic Studies program; lots of different
clubs came together to organize the walkout, too many past failed attempts because their
movements were not centralized so it was important that they rally together
00:37:31 – The walkout was planned for a Friday afternoon right before the lunch hour; it started
on the fourth floor of College Hall, students would do the chants then go down each floor
collecting more students from classes
00:38:20 – Students would read letters to the editor during the walkout; Ronnie Estoque did
research in archives from the Bulletin, found a bunch of letters from years ago
00:39:17 – After the walkout there were meetings with Thayne, other admin, and deans from other
schools; this brought the creation of the Ethnic Studies program at Gonzaga
00:40:41 – Reiteration that ethnic studies is history for people of color and marginalized people;
other Gonzaga classes are very Eurocentric and taught through white supremacist lenses; ethnic
studies was created in a way to counteract that and uplift marginalized voices and communities
00:42:42 – Rani hopes that CRES won’t just be a minor in the future, hopefully it will be a major
and have its own department; during the first meetings to start the program there was a huge
emphasis on CRES program and not CRES minor otherwise it would never develop past a minor
00:43:29 – Hopes that the narrative that CRES was a collective, intergenerational, student-led
effort does not leave and that admin does not take credit for this
00:44:34 – When she was a student, she believed CRES should have been mandatory but no longer
believes that because the experience could be ruined for students who want to be there by students
who don’t; should be a safe place for students of color
00:45:45 – Rani asks who else we are interviewing, we inform her of some other people
00:46:50 – Rani asks us some questions about our experiences in CRES classes, some more info
on CRES 499, and what our satisfaction is with our current CRES department
00:50:34 – Rani expresses her gratefulness at being able to see some of the fruits of her labor and
getting to talk to Dr. Calafell and Dr. Dame-Griff
00:52:20 – Avier thanks our interviewee and gives her information on the final project
Interviewee Biography/Photo
Amayrani Chávez (she/they), otherwise known as Rani, was born and raised in East Palo Alto, CA. Amayrani attended Gonzaga University where they studied English Literature and Solidarity & Social Justice, with a specific interest in Multicultural Literature and Ethnic Studies. As a student, Amayrani was heavily involved in various mentoring programs, where they worked with students with underrepresented identities across middle school, high school, and collegiate levels to aid them in their identity development and academic success. She transitioned from student to staff at Gonzaga and served as the Program Coordinator for Mentoring in the Unity Multicultural Education Center. In this role, she mentored students through their transition to higher education and planning for college and career success. Currently, Amayrani serves as the Middle School Program Coordinator at Breakthrough Silicon Valley, where they aid students and their families in the first steps of their college journey. In the various positions Rani has held, she has stayed true to her mission: to support students with marginalized identities and empower them to see their potential as change makers.
Descriptive Paragraph
Rani Chávez graduated Gonzaga University in December 2018. During her time as a student, she held leadership positions in cultural clubs, was a mentor in the BRIDGE program, and participated in many meetings that would eventually lead to the creation of the Critical Race and Ethnic Studies program at Gonzaga. In this interview, Rani goes into detail about what they remember about the fight for the creation of an ethnic studies program at Gonzaga, including a detailed description of the walkout that happened in November 2018. They also speak about some of their experiences with racism on campus and how it compared to similar experiences of past Gonzaga alumni. Rani retells the drama that unfolded due to the Where Were You When video and what gears that incident sent into motion, including the creation of the Concerned Students group. She explains her motivation to write a letter to the editor to the Bulletin and the importance of those letters from other students of color had in the walkout. Throughout this interview, Rani reiterated the importance for an ethnic studies program for students of color so that they may have their own space where they are taught their own histories outside of a Eurocentric, white supremacist lens. Her hope for the future of this program is that it continues to grow and expand so that there may eventually be a major and a large CRES department for many future students of color to enjoy.
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