The author recounts how they could not "be myself" or be authentic in the same way that White peers could without being stereotyped as anything other than a typical college student. The article endeavors to interrogate the loose, subjective definition of authenticity in higher education as a potentially precarious practice for BIPOC who lack a layer of insulation from a judgment that White colleagues benefit from. It discussed the need to reclaim authenticity beyond the socially constructed and oppressive traditions and create spaces in which BIPOC can experience authentic liberation on their own terms.