Bianca Jackson

Review of Columbus Ballet

I attended Balletmet and danced with them for many...

I attended Balletmet and danced with them for many years. Unfortunately, like myself and many other black dancers. Balletmet has shown racist tendencies. My personal experience has been that the teachers were not friendly. They didn t treat me as equal and have the same expectations for me as other student who didn t look like me. I was told that my people should stick to jazz and African dance. I was told that my people s body type is not for ballet. I was told by the director that I should consider myself fortunate to even be attending Balletmet on a scholarship. That the only reason I was there is because rich white people paid my way. Little did this director know. I understood that Balletmet received government funding for blacks to attend. Black females have went through so much hatred at Balletmet. As an adult now, I have finally overcome the childhood scars left by the staff and the parents I encountered. I have too many stories and memories I could share. The reality is that even in 2018 the reality that as blacks in this society... we are still treat less than human.