Zamiya Jean
- As an NYU student, I've been able to study abroad in Florence and Paris.
- In Italy, I experienced racism, and in Paris, I struggled to fit in.
- I still love traveling and will study abroad again next semester.
From a young age, I was interested in traveling the world.
During my family trips throughout the US as a kid, I took time to explore the uniqueness of each place. I watched how the people interacted with each other and how their lifestyles fit into the composition of each city.
My fascination with exploring new places ignited my urge to travel throughout college, and New York University perfectly facilitated that urge.
I learned to use my school's resources to achieve my aims
I'm enrolled in the university's Gallatin School of Individualized Study, which allows me to craft my own major to best suit my interests. I'm focusing on marketing, media, design, and international business.
At Gallatin, I have the freedom to study abroad as many times as I want. Additionally, NYU's affiliations worldwide allow my financial aid and scholarship to travel with me — along with additional funds and study-away grants that have made the costs to zero.
Because of this, I studied at NYU Florence in the fall and NYU Paris in the spring of my sophomore year. I'm getting ready for NYU London in spring.
In Florence, I learned to find comfort in the mundane
When I got to Florence in my sophomore year, I felt like a freshman again; I had to adjust to a different city by myself. Sometimes I was completely alone and had to find ways to be OK with that.
Luckily, I found biking. I biked through the streets of Florence daily and fell in love with the city.
Through biking, I found comfort in being alone. I used my time biking to explore new towns, while zooming to the beat of a chill song. I didn't need to go on extravagant and expensive trips each weekend to feel fulfilled: The intimate trips I took on my bike became the most memorable.
Unfortunately, anti-Blackness followed me to Italy
Before I went to Florence, I watched multiple TikTok videos of Black women who went to Italy sharing how horrible their experience was. It scared me enough that I almost reconsidered studying there, but I went anyway.
Unfortunately, my fears were validated. I did have to worry about being out alone too late as a woman, especially as a Black woman. I often was nervous about being kidnapped, robbed, fetishized, or treated poorly just because of my race — just like the other Black women were on TikTok.
I noticed that I was catcalled more aggressively than my non-Black, female classmates when we were out late in Italy. It seemed that sexual verbal violence was more accepted when it was against Black women. It's sad but true.
I've learned each city has issues, but I'm glad I was prepared for it. Despite this, I loved my semester in Florence.
During the spring semester of my sophomore year, I studied abroad again; this time, I went to Paris
Before arriving in Paris, I had high expectations — based on my experiences in Florence. I thought living and studying in Paris would be easier than in Florence because it's a larger city where I could interact with more people from different ethnic backgrounds. My sentiment quickly shifted.
While there were many nice people that I interacted with, there were a lot of negative views of me as an American. I had to step back and understand that these views were not personal to me but reactions to the actions of other Americans in general.
I leaned into my other identities: I'm Black, Caribbean, Haitian, and St. Lucian, as well as a New Yorker. I found ways to use my different identities to connect with different Parisians. Once I started doing this, I began to come to peace with the major cultural differences and enjoyed the city.
Once I learned to adjust to each city, I enjoyed my study-abroad experience
Traveling isn't easy, especially as a Black woman. Studying abroad with a romantic, hyperunrealistic, and stereotypical view of a new country will not help at all, I learned. I had to accept that as a Black person, the racism I experienced in America would not be less severe in Europe — just different. I had to adapt to living in another part of the world where racism is alive and well.
None of that will stop me from doing what I believe is best for me: traveling the world. I'm still looking forward to my third study-abroad semester in spring, this time in London.