Drs. Tony de Jesus, Anthony Johnston, and Don Siler of University of St. Joseph recount their intervention in a multiracial high school in crisis. White students had instigated a “game” of addressing Black students as the n-word. We discuss the impact of racialization in the Trump era on white students, students of color, and the school community as well as actual and potential responses by schools.

*Episode originally posted on February 26th, 2020.

Overview

00:00-00:48 Intros

00:49-03:13 “Name game”: the background

03:14-04:58 The “name game”

04:59-05:30 The intervention

05:31-08:41 Student: “Being white means being seen as racist”

08:42-12:13 Racialized identities/racialization of youth

12:14-13:39 Impact of racialization on school community

13:40-16:46 Obstacles to whites grasping the impact of race-related experiences on Black students

16:47-19:03 Administrators’ and faculty members’ responses

19:04-20:37 The blame game

20:38-23:43 White students  who wanted to address the issue

23:44-29:35 The “n-word” and language

29:36-34:08 Applying the lens of ethics

34:09-37:00 Bakhtin, carnival, heteroglossia

37:01-46:30 How can schools respond to racism/racist actions?

46:31-48:05 Parents

48:06-49:30 Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcription of the episode. 

References

Book Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? And Other Conversations About Race by Beverly Tatum.

Credits

Photo by Spencer Pierce / Unsplash

Soundtrack by Podington Bear