“My name is Joy Wilson. I’m a senior double-majoring in African American studies and legal studies, and I’m a first-gen student.  My mom migrated here from Guyana in South America. She is a single parent, and because it’s always been just me and her, she’s my best friend, my ride or die. She’s worked at Albertsons for the past 21 years, and she loves and supports me in everything. She’s always instilled in me the importance of higher education. She just wanted me to have a better life and succeed in whatever field I chose. Berkeley was my first major admission; I got a letter of acceptance and the Regents’ and Chancellor’s scholarship. I knew nothing about Berkeley or the prestige, but my mom would tell people, and they’d freak out: ‘That’s amazing!’ I looked it up and found it’s the number one public university and has a history of advocacy. I’m from SoCal, Vista, CA. It’s predominantly a Latinx community, not a lot of Black people around — mostly just my family. My second semeste...