Create a free Diverse: Issues In Higher Education account to continue reading

Unboxed: The Art of Fighting Off Limiting Labels

Dr Marcus Bright Headshot 213591 637e62cb81db6


What would happen if you gave yourself a chance to live out your purpose? When we allow external labels to restrict us, or we put ourselves in a box we are taking away that chance. The feeling of being confined to a certain title, role, or position is an issue that is often and chatted about behind closed doors but rarely addressed out in the open.  This is not about being unappreciative for the role that you may have for it is true that a person can flourish in a position that is assigned to them by others. It can also be true that the role that someone has for you may not be the role best suited for your bigger purpose.

I lead off with my own example of why I freely admit that I despise organizational and occupational titles being applied to me. I only list one when I absolutely must. There is something within me that resents the notion of putting my ability into the confines of a singular position. Dr. Marcus BrightDr. Marcus Bright

This goes back to my basketball recruitment and experience during my high school and college career. I felt like the position that I was listed as was weaponized against me and used to limit where I could go. Because I could shoot the ball exceptional well and it was the strongest part of my game, I was listed as a “shooting guard” or a “2 guard”.

The problem with that was the assumptions that came along with the position classification. It is often assumed that shooting guards don’t have the ball handling ability or skillset to also play point guard. The categorization came with marginalization and limitation.

I was boxed in based on being categorized as a shooting guard. It was assumed that shooting guards who play at the higher levels of college basketball must be a certain height. This was problematic for me because I was the height of a college basketball “point guard” at 6’1 so a lot of programs automatically disqualified me based on my position classification regardless of my ability or production.

In such, my elite three-point shooting ability became both a gift and a curse. It created opportunities for me to continue my education and playing career, but the label of being a “shooter” limited where I could go and what position I played on the floor.

A New Track: Fostering Diversity and Equity in Athletics
American sport has always served as a platform for resistance and has been measured and critiqued by how it responds in critical moments of racial and social crises.
Read More
A New Track: Fostering Diversity and Equity in Athletics