7 “This is Not Your Language”: Plagiarism and Racism at Suffolk University

Tiffany Martínez

Tiffany Martínez was born in New York and moved to Massachusetts, where she studied sociology at Suffolk University starting in 2013 (Martínez, 2016). Martínez is of Latina heritage and is both a first-generation college student and a first-generation U.S. citizen (Martínez, 2016). Academically, she was a dedicated and outstanding student, with the qualifications to back it up. In addition to juggling at least two jobs, she successfully maintained her status as a full-time student and consistently made the Dean’s List (Martínez, 2016). By her third year, Martinez had an impressive record of achievements, including presenting at national conferences, writing a piece published in a peer-reviewed journal, and securing federal funding for a research project on female youth empowerment (Martínez, 2016). In 2016, she began sharing her passions in blog posts regarding poetry, art, social justice, and education (Martínez, 2016), and it was a blog post that led to widespread interest in the alleged plagiarism incident at the center of this case.

An Accusation of Plagiarism in Front of the Class

The incident between Tiffany Martinez and her professor occurred directly in the lecture hall. In an interview on the Chronicle.com, (Zamudio-Suarez, 2016), Martinez recounts her story as she vividly remembers the day her academic career changed dramatically. It all began in her sociology senior seminar, a class reserved for students nearing the end of their degree. Martinez had been absent the previous week, therefore receiving her paper a week late; she was one of two individuals receiving their assignment that day.

Martinez recounts that she was called to the front of the class, and then had a discussion with the professor going over her paper. The first comment from the professor was “this is not your language” (Zamudio-Suarez, 2016). Another comment on the paper reads, “please go back and indicate where you cut and paste” (Zamudio-Suarez, 2016). Martinez’s biggest issue was with the way the professor handled the situation. She stated “I would prefer it to be a one-on-one conversation so we can discuss it and not have it in front of my peers” (Zamudio-Suarez, 2016). Feeling abashed by the professor’s decision to hold this discussion within earshot of the whole class, Martinez said she felt the professor handled the situation incorrectly: “perhaps she didn’t understand how much what she was saying affected me”(Zamudio-Suarez, 2016). The embarrassment served to Martinez came as a surprise to her; she defended herself, maintaining that she didn’t plagiarize the paper and that the professor had taken a stab at her identity rather than analyzing her work. From Martinez’s point of view, the professor was biased toward her because of her Latina identity and couldn’t fathom the fact that Martinez did in fact write her own paper. The word that set the professor off was “hence” (Gagosz, 2016). “Hence” is a fairly common word in the academic world, but according to the professor, this was simply not in Martinez’s vocabulary. This leads to the reason we are actually aware of this case, the blog post turned viral made by Martinez titled “Academia, Love Me Back” (Martínez, 2016).

Exploring Different Perspectives

Martínez’s blog post instantly became viral, and the hashtag  “#hence” started to become a trend. To Martínez, this incident was more than a simple case of potential plagiarism, rather it was a form of racist microaggression that she refused to ignore. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the only instance of racism she had encountered on campus. She recalls an experience from her time as a Resident Assistant when a student confused her for a custodian simply because she was speaking Spanish on the phone with her mother (Gagosz, 2016).

Although she did not set out for the post to go viral, there was a clear reason it resonated so widely. Moreover, Martínez reflects on the sense of defeat she experienced upon realizing that her professor, someone she admired for guidance and support, was so quick to accuse her of something so uncharacteristic, as she states: “It was such a weird moment for me, of just like it finally happened, someone doesn’t believe that I can be this scholarly or I can be an academic” (Lemme tell you somethin’, 2016).

The blog post quickly gained traction, creating an upset within the university, where a newly established group called “Stand Up Suffolk” organized rallies (Gagosz, 2016). The support Martínez received stretched far out of the university as Herman Beavers, a Professor of English and African Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, wrote to acting president Maria Kelly, calling for transparency regarding misconduct, mentioning that “the bigotry of one faculty member in no way diminishes [Martínez’s] accomplishments or her prospects” (Journal, 2016).

The letter, which received more than 277 signatures, also expressed disapproval with how the potential plagiarism incident was handled, describing that the public shaming was both unwarranted and unnecessary (Journal, 2016). On October 28, 2016, an email was sent out from Suffolk’s acting president Marisa Kelly, where stated that a mistake was made and that the university was taking the issue seriously by conducting investigations. The email continued to echo the importance of diversity stating that “Suffolk University is deeply committed to fostering an inclusive environment. Every student and every member of our community should feel respected” (Kelly & Royo, 2016).

Kelly claimed that prejudice is common on college campuses and that faculty and staff need to be supported to understand and respect students’ diversity (The Christian Science Monitor, 2011). Also Kelly emphasized in the Christian Science Monitor (2011), that the Martinez incident was proof of the seriousness of the situation. She stated that there were many events organized at the university that encourage professors and students to respect each other and help reduce discrimination, and that they were working specifically on micro-aggressions and were training faculty members to understand the concerns of minority groups (The Christian Science Monitor, 2011).

The community of supporters began to expand, as students became inspired by Martínez to share their shared experience of racism in academia. Another Suffolk University student, Sheikh Nasher, also voiced his experience with racism within the University stating: “I actually know Tiffany Martínez, I admire the work she does. The incident that took place with her is not a new thing, it happens everywhere in a campus. I have experienced it myself. There was an incident where I was told to ‘get deported’ [last year]” (Gagosz, 2016).

In her post about the incident, Martínez wrote that “The entire field of academia is broken and erases the narratives of people like me. We all have work to do to fix the lack of diversity and understanding among marginalized communities. We all have work to do” (Martínez, 2016).

The interaction between Martínez and her professor clearly sparked a wave of frustration and a call for change, with many backing her decision to bring her issue to light. However, other reactions raised alternative perspectives on this case. A blog called “Scholars and Rogues” explains the frustration of not knowing what really happened, and that the story is only told from one point of view. Furthermore, the blog points out that when Martínez introduces the story by highlighting the unfair bias faced by students like her, it inherently shapes the perspective and narrative to suggest that the professor was racist, even without her explicitly stating it, leading readers into the idea that this is not a case about false plagiarism, but about racial biases. The blog suggests that Martínez should have let the readers form their own opinion regarding the case, rather than setting it up in such a way. The blog further states that “Martínez [should have] devoted more energy to presenting us with facts we can consider and less time indulging in emotional indignation” (Smith, 2016).

For instance, a significant question that sparked curiosity was why the teacher singled out Martínez among all the students present. While this detail was not addressed in Martínez’s initial blog post, she revealed in an interview with the Chronicle of Higher Education that she was absent from the class before, when the professor initially handed the papers back (Zamudio-Suarez, 2016). This is important to mention because it suggests that Martínez was not singled out; rather, it was simply due to her absence from the class when the teacher chose to return the papers.

Another perspective to consider is that of the other students. Some students were shocked to read such insinuating claims regarding their professor. One student showed support towards the professor, saying, “I think our professor is a good person. She means well” (Zamudio-Suarez, 2016). Another claimed that the class had “talked about Black Lives Matter and the professor seemed in full support of Black lives and the movement so I don’t think she’s racist” (Gagosz, 2016). Two other students explained in an interview that similarly to Martínez, they received critiques questioning the choice of language in their papers (Gagosz, 2016). Additionally, several students also explained that the professor provided both negative and positive remarks on student writing throughout the class, where Martínez was absent (Gagosz, 2016).

Next Steps In Life

After graduating from Suffolk and earning her MA from Columbia University, Martínez was admitted to New York University’s Teaching & Learning PhD program, with a focus on Urban Communities. Her goal has been improving the U.S. public school system to better support marginalized youth. Her research explores race, gender, and language learning with a strong emphasis on inclusive, multilingual education. Combining theory and practice, she has worked with nonprofits and public schools in Boston and New York City to develop inclusive, culturally responsive curriculum. (NYU Steinhardt, n.d.)

Discussion Questions

1. How could have the professor better handled the incident after discovering the alleged plagiarism?
2. Some students expressed support for the professor, pointing out that while her grading can be strict, she applies the same standards to all papers. Two other students mentioned that they faced similar criticism about the language in their own paper. Does this justify the professor’s approach?
3. What do you think about Martínez’s decision to create the blog post?  What other methods might she have considered to handle this situation?
4. Do you believe that academic integrity can or should be race-neutral? Why or why not?
5. How can culture and race influence the way a student is treated academically?

References

The Christian Science Monitor. (2016, November 11). How an allegation of plagiarism shed light on racial discrimination. The Christian Science Monitor. https://www.csmonitor.com/EqualEd/2016/1111/How-an-allegation-of-plagiarism-shed-light-on-racial-discrimination

Gagosz, A. (2016, October 30). Martínez said viral blog post isn’t her first racial incident. The Suffolk Journal. https://thesuffolkjournal.com/21683/news/martinez-said-viral-blog-post-isnt-the-first-racial-incident-at-suffolk/

Gagosz, A. (2016, November 2). In the spotlight: Witnesses speak on Student’s viral blog. The Suffolk Journal. https://thesuffolkjournal.com/21692/news/in-the-spotlight-witnesses-speak-on-students-viral-blog/

Gagosz, A. (2016, November 10). Viral blog post under scope, no word on investigation. The Suffolk Journal. https://thesuffolkjournal.com/21811/news/viral-blog-post-under-scope-no-word-on-investigation/

Smith, W. (2016) The Tiffany Martínez Case: Her post is long on emotional appeal and short on details – progressive culture | scholars & rogues, Scholars & Rogues. Available at: https://scholarsandrogues.com/2016/10/30/the-tiffany-martinez-case-her-post-is-long-on-emotional-appeal-and-short-on-details/ (Accessed: 30 October 2024).

Suffolk Journal/. (2016) Letter to the editor: More than 277 signatures from across the country sign a letter to acting president Marisa Kelly, The Suffolk Journal. Available at: https://thesuffolkjournal.com/21677/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/more-than-175-signatures-from-across-the-country-sign-a-letter-to-acting-president-marisa-kelly/ (Accessed: 30 October 2024).

Tiffany C. Martínez. NYU Steinhardt. (n.d.). https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/people/tiffany-c-martinez

Kelly, Marissa and Sebàstian Royo “Suffolk University Boston” October 18, 2016. Boston, Massachusetts. Email. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cv4W-CnXYAAHjpC.jpg

Martínez, T. (2016, October 28). Academia, Love me back. WordPress.  https://vivatiffany.wordpress.com/2016/10/27/academia-love-me-back/

Zamudio-Suarez, F. (2016, October 18). ‘not your language’: How a classroom interaction led a student to speak out on microaggressions. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/not-your-language-how-a-classroom-interaction-led-a-student-to-speak-out-on-microaggressions/