The Princeton Hidden Minority Council (PHMC), a group of students dedicated to eradicating the stigma around students identifying as first-generation or low-income, has created a new project this January to help further its goal: “Thoughts.”The Thoughts Campaign asks a simple question: What goes on in the minds of low-income or first-generation students on a campus that is known for its abundance of wealth and wealthy students? The PHMC has been talking to students who identify as low-income or first-generation, then posting their pictures along with thought bubbles representing their experiences on campus.
The pictures can be found on PHMC’s blog and Facebook page as well as on posters around campus.Brittney Watkins, one of two co-chairmen of the council, said that the campaign’s purpose is to shed light on Princeton’s socio-economically disadvantaged community and to make sure that those students do not feel alone.“[The] PHMC Thoughts campaign helps to spread dialogue about first-generation and low-income students, and while we cannot fully convey all of the obstacles that they face, it just gives people a little taste,” she said.Watkins explained that the PHMC and this campaign aim to bring attention to a minority status that is not physically recognizable, hence the name “Hidden” Minority Council. Other students on campus, she said, don’t always think about the financial situations of others, but that for the people who are disadvantaged, thoughts about finances are common.“As a low-income first generation student, these thoughts plague you throughout your everyday routine,” she said. “At a place like Princeton, not everyone is comfortable coming out and saying that they are low-income or first-generation because […] you’re in a world or an environment where there is just such extravagance.”Though the project is aimed at spreading discussion to the campus on a larger scale, Watkins said that the project also helps those who participate in it.“For the people who are participating in the campaign, it kind of empowers and allows them to take ownership of their identity and say ‘Yeah, these are the obstacles I face while I am here, but I’m pursuing on despite this,’” she said.
