Highlighting Chapman’s Latinx student athletes

Despite representing a small demographic amongst Chapman students, Latinx athletes say that teammates embrace their culture and who they are as individuals. UNSPLASH

Latinx students are the largest minority at Chapman University, making up 17% of the undergraduate student body. For student athletes, feeling at home on the field can be difficult, especially when representing a minority group on campus.

However, Senior health science major Ivan Bustos said that when he joined the men’s soccer team, he had no issues fitting in with the team and took pride in representing a minority group on campus.

“Here at Chapman being part of the Latino group — it’s really an honor because a lot of other people will look at that and then hopefully we can have more diversity in our campus,” Bustos said. “I know we do have new projects within diversity and inclusion so being the start of it is really something to be proud of.”

Bustos’ teammate Victor Jacinto, also a senior health science major, expanded on this idea and talked about their efforts to promote representation on campus.

“Everyone considers each other brother, regardless of your background, race or ethnicity,” Jacinto said. “Even though being a Hispanic is a minority here, I definitely feel that (the sport) has given us a platform to stand out not just among the school in general but for our fellow Hispanics who feel like we could be underrepresented on campus.” 

Jacinto and Bustos discussed the ways they share their culture in the locker room. For Bustos, this involved him and his teammates talking about their athletic journeys and obstacles they had to overcome.

Jacinto said that there is an aspect of integration involved with him and his teammates embracing Hispanic culture and it can even be as simple as the musical tastes that they share.

“I’ve definitely noticed like even some of our white American teammates listen to typical Hispanic music,” Jacinto said. “So I think just having that background (with music) mixed with their backgrounds is pretty cool because they understand where we’re coming from rather than just setting (American culture as) the norm.”

Junior history major Kaitlyn Pasillas and defender on the women’s water polo team, also said that the degree to which she shares her culture shows in the form of music. But Pasillas is open to sharing more aspects of her culture.

“I’ve never felt like, especially this team, there would be any pushback against (sharing more of my culture) because people on my team come from a lot of different places and a lot of them share similar experiences to me,” Pasillas said. “I think given the opportunity, people would be really receptive to it.”

Many Latin American countries have an influence on sports — especially soccer — and Bustos said that while many of his teammates admire Hispanic soccer players, the admiration extends more broadly to players worldwide. 

He likes to look at his cultural upbringing intersecting with the sport compared to his teammates from other parts of the world.

“I take a lot of pride in Hispanic players because both of my parents are immigrants from Mexico and they both had a background within their families of the sport,” Bustos said. “I’m continuing that legacy (of my parents playing soccer) in a different country. As I look at other teammates who are coming from other countries, it’s always cool to learn about their experiences and how they view the sport from a different viewpoint.”

In their time as soccer players at Chapman, Bustos and Jacinto have positive experiences with the team, playing the sport and having teammates that see them for more than their cultural background. 

Jacinto hopes to continue breaking the stigma of minority groups being unable to find their place in a school that is predominantly white American.

“I have seen people that I know personally on campus that are Hispanic who are even afraid to mix with white American students because of their background,” Jacinto said. “They see them as like, ‘Oh, maybe they’re wealthier. They have privilege.’ All these examples of stigma that have been broken at least in the experience that we’ve had.”

The same goes with Pasillas and her time spent on the women’s water polo team. She feels that she can build upon these positive experiences by taking more steps towards getting her teammates more involved with the culture.

“I’ve never felt like that part of my identity would ever be minimized (in women’s water polo),” Pasillas said. “I’ve always loved the idea of getting together as a team and (sharing) our different cultural foods. I think that would be a really great experience and just a way to get more in touch with my culture and to bring more people into it as well.”