Last May, the 91st Miss Coppin State University, made history as the school’s first, non-black queen. Today, she is the subject of stark online criticism. 

Perez’s reign became extremely controversial following a viral post on her Tiktok. At almost eighty thousand likes, the video shows Perez alongside her “Mister” walking past the queen and king of another historically black college. 

“Black people can’t have nothing,” says one commenter in reaction to Guatemalan-American queen, Keylin Perez’s title at Coppin State University.

The senior nursing major and Army Reserves sergeant is a first-generation American, whose parents are originally from Guatemala. 

Many have expressed their dissatisfaction at seeing a non-black HBCU queen. One Tiktok user commented she could not decide which was worse, Perez “having the audacity to run or n*ggas actually voting for her to win.” 

Other comments read “why are you here?”

Located in Baltimore, Coppin State University (a historically black college/university) has elected black women to represent as their queen since 1929. The title is held with great esteem. Each new “Miss” carries on a lasting legacy of ambassadorship and in many cases, black excellence. 

Perez, 22,  addressed concerns on her personal Instagram page acknowledging that though she has held two other royal court positions, this is not the first time she’s “received so much hate for being the first Latina as Miss Coppin.”

Perez’s statement details why she chose to attend an HBCU, and what inspired her to run for Miss Coppin State University.  “I never felt accepted, and when I stepped foot on the campus of THEE illustrious Coppin State University, I felt peace and love,” says Perez. 

The Latina queen went on to affirm that she won the election fair and square. “To make things clear, I did not just ‘sign up’ or ‘take this spot from someone,’ I had to compete in a pageant which I ran unopposed, I still had to campaign, and gain the student body votes. I gained this support genuinely.”

Other HBCU royals have publicly empathized with Perez. Fourteen othe rreigning HBCU queens, including Miss Howard University, compiled a two-minute video encouraging their sister queen. 

“An HBCU queen is a woman that represents her college or university with pride, joy, love, and an unmeasurable amount of commitment,” began Miss Clark Atlanta University. 

“I love how brave you are and I love how you exemplify the essence of grace,” said Miss Southern University. 

Coppin State President, Dr. Anthony L. Jenkins says he is “saddened, but not surprised to learn of the racist, hurtful, and unintelligent comments made by several people on social media,” in a recent Instagram video.

“We are a proud HBCU that educates a multicultural and multigenerational student population,” said Jenkins. “Thus, we value diversity and inclusion. As such, we do not buy into the myth that students who represent our HBCU, must be African American.”

Although many may disagree with Perez’s title, her legacy is making an everlasting impact that goes far beyond Coppin State University. By wearing that crown and performing her queenly duties, Perez’s situation has unintentionally exposed the nasty side of HBCU culture that needs to be addressed.

Regardless of the fact that her skin color is lighter and that her hair grows out of her head much straighter than mine, I find Keylin Perez to be inspirational.