Thomas, C.M. (2016). Black youth identity development: Media influence in a colorblind society. (Doctoral dissertation). ProQuest Database. (1025347)
This basic qualitative inquiry investigated how 10 Black high school aged youth constructed their identities through the intersection of racial identity, racism, and media. Learning is socially constructed, and the ways in which we conceptualize knowledge are complex. For Blacks, part of that complexity involves navigating modern racism; bias masked as colorblindness. Youth voice was…
Thomas, C.M. (2019). Society and the Classroom: Teaching Truths and Bridging Diversity in a Discordant Era. Educational Studies 0(0), 1-12. DOI. 10.1080/00131946.2019.1617147
A generation of learners is growing up in one of the most polarized eras in modern US history, where demands for credible connections and pluralistic policies are countered with divisive rhetoric. The urgent need for honest dialog emanates from the public square, mass media, news, popular culture, schools, and universities. As controversial events touch our…
Hoggan, J. (2016). I’m right and you’re an idiot: The toxic state of public discourse and how to clean it up. Gabriola Island, BC, Canada: New Society Publishers.
An absolute MUST READ! Written just as the United States was politically coming un-done, Hoggan’s work feeds the soul. It reminds us that it is natural for the stakes to be high. And that it is equally natural to be disgusted by the bullying, and the nastiness that has consumed public discourse. With insight and…
Loewen, J. W. (2005). Sundown towns: A hidden dimension of American racism. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
The author of the famed, “Lies my teacher told me,” once again digs deep into America’s hidden past, and uncovers the dark practices that underscores the current complexity and segregation of today’s landscape. Loewen’s research illustrates the painful and surprising depths that cities and towns across America went to, and in some cases still do,…
Sue, D. W. (2015). Race talk and the conspiracy of silence: Understanding and facilitating difficult dialogues on race. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley.
Sue explicitly illustrates problems and successes of intercultural discussions on race. Drawing from his vast and intricate knowledge of sociology, psychology, counseling, and diverse races, Sue applies this information to racialized thinking, to lay a foundation for constructive dialogue. Sue exposes myths held about racial dialogue and the feelings of people of color, using relevant…
Sensoy, O. & DiAngelo, R. (2012). Is everyone really equal?: An introduction to key concepts in social justice education. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Sensoy and DiAngelo provide context and language to the concept of race, racism, and social justice in a format suited for high school students and beyond. The text conceptualizes some of the most critical principles of social justice education, including intersectionality, White privilege, oppression, and White supremacy. The book is a working resource, with strategies,…
Neville, H., Gallardo, M.E. & Sue, D. W. (2016). The myth of racial color blindness: Manifestations, dynamics, and impact. (1st ed.). Washington D.C: American Psychological Association.
Using the springboard of post-racial ideology as a result of electing a Black president; in this text, authors and scholars in sociology, education, and psychology examine and define color-blindness. The book examines the impact of post-racial thinking in education, workplace, and health care contexts. Looking closely at how color-blind beliefs are expressed by different ethnicities,…
Bonilla-Silva, E. (2014). Racism without racists: Color-blind racism and the persistence of racial inequality in America (4th ed.). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
Bonilla-Silva, who popularized the idea of modern racism as a society overshadowed by the false ideology of color-blindness, illustrates the degree to which much of American culture is used to justify and perpetuate racial inequality. He details ways in which Blacks and other people of color continue to suffer economic oppression, even while we believe…
Alexander, M. (2012). The new Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of color-blindness. New York, NY: The New Press.
Responding to the idea that we are beyond racism as a result of President Obama’s election, Alexander illustrates the ways in which racism has been re-designed to keep hidden the systemic abuses still suffered by Blacks. She draws irrefutable correlations between old and new racialized practices, through her analysis of the ways in which America’s…