Personality Profile

Chiquita Jackson talks about being a leader in a stifling environment.

She was wearing African garb decorated with vibrant green and pink prints. Donning a headpiece and a dress that’s reminiscent of African regality, it didn’t take long to notice her in a room filled with university students and faculty dressed in westernized clothing. Before the event started, the projector for the presentation read, “Queen Chiquita’s Macbook.” Chiquita Jackson, the president of Multicultural Student Government, graced the podium and presented Chancellor Douglas Girod at MSG’s inaugural Straight Talk event to promote transparency between minority students at the University of Kansas and its chancellor.

“As far as retention rates, what is the university’s  plan to help retain marginalized identities to have a four-year college plan and not a six or a seven-year college plan because that’s a big difference?” Jackson said.

Andrew Jackson, MSG’s chief of staff,  evoked the same sentiment as Chiquita Jackson when he approached the mic. Following Chiquita Jackson’s lead, Andrew Jackson said, has been a pleasure for him, considering that MSG initially struggled to gain recognition by the university.

“Working with Chiquita has been a journey. Because we both were so new to this, and we did not have a model to follow, we struggled at first as an executive board to make things happen, but Chiquita stayed resilient. Even in the midst of controversy, she remained focused on the work and was determined to fight for the well being of the organization,” her chief of staff said.

Back in her office, Chiquita Jackson flaunted heels, a red skirt, and a blazer that covered a shirt that said “Respect, Protect, Love the Black Woman.”  Although her outfit was a bit unusual for a typical school day, she entered the room with a warm welcome.

Chiquita Jackson said that she found this urge for campus leadership as she unfortunately realized the complexities of being a black student at a predominately white institution. She said that she experienced a culture shock coming from Detroit, on the east side of 8 Mile to be exact, to a university where other identities aren’t validated.

“Detroit was amazing to me. I consider it my ghetto paradise. I love Detroit. It’s like a family. Down here, I don’t get that. Coming down here was a culture shock. Being the only black girl in the classroom and not seeing African-American teachers is still tough for me,” Chiquita Jackson said.

However, the deterioration of the formerly thriving city that was kept afloat by the beats of Motown and the auto industry forced Jackson to learn things on her own.

“ It was very very different, just the poverty standpoint of it. Growing up, being the first person in my family to graduate high school and being the first person in my family to get accepted to a university and eventually be a college graduate, different things like that were different for me. My family wasn’t able to give me the resources I needed to be equipped, so basically everything I’m doing now I’m learning on my own,” Jackson said.

Jackson, a pre-law and psychology major, said that her main goals as president of the organization are community outreach and ensuring that marginalized identities have a voice on campus.

Darius Jones, adviser for the National Pan-Hellenic Council on campus, said, “Chiquita is a strong leader this campus needs. Her involvement with MSG really does shed light on marginalized identities and I feel the campus is listening. She hosted the NPHC step show this year, and when her name was brought to host, I immediately said yes. After seeing Chiquita in action at the first Straight Talk, I witnessed how she can command a space.”

When an employee at a local Burger King threatened on social media last month to lynch one of the black employees and the restaurant didn’t take action, Jackson issued a statement about her organization’s intolerance of racial discrimination.

“As for Multicultural Student Government of KU, we do not tolerate racism anywhere, and for that reason, we are currently working towards making KU a safe place for students with marginalized identities”, Jackson said.

Chiquita Jackson also said that having the organization to be its own independent governing body would be something that she wishes would happen before she graduates.

“ For a lot of people, Senate isn’t doing its job, and MSG, you know, we’re already taking on the responsibility of Student Senate, so basically just having us be united and represented as a student body government is something that I want to see,” Jackson said.

Multicultural Student Government is the first governing body on college campuses in the nation, which is a precedent that Jackson hopes other colleges would follow.

“I realized that I can do more with my voice and do more with my potential and my knowledge rather than just being back in the sidelines just watching people, who don’t know what to do, continue to run things,” Chiquita Jackson said.