Anti-Racism LibGuide

Anti-racism: "Anti-racism is an active way of seeing and being in the world, in order to transform it. Because racism occurs at all levels and spheres of society (and can function to produce and maintain exclusionary "levels" and "spheres"), anti-racism education/activism is necessary in all aspects of society. In other words, it does not happen exclusively in the workplace, in the classroom, or in selected aspects of our lives." [Source]

"Being anti-racist is different for white people than it is for people of color. For white people, being antiracist evolves with their racial identity development. They must acknowledge and understand their privilege, work to change their internalized racism, and interrupt racism when they see it. For people of color, it means recognizing how race and racism have been internalized, and whether it has been applied to other people of color.

All racial groups struggle under white supremacy. People of color groups are not always united in solidarity. People of color can act by challenging internalized white supremacy and interrupting patterns of prejudice against other racial groups. For everyone, it is an ongoing practice and process." [Source]

Reframing Perspectives

"A commitment to being anti-racist manifests in our choices. When we encounter interpersonal racism, whether obvious or covert, there are ways to respond and interrupt it. Asking questions is a powerful tool to seek clarity or offer a new perspective. Below are some suggestions to use in conversations when racists behavior occurs: 

• Offer an alternative perspective: “Have you ever considered __________.”
• Speak your truth: “I don’t see it the way you do. I see it as __________.”
• Find common ground: “We don’t agree on __________ but we can agree on __________.”
• Give yourself the time and space you need: “Could we revisit the conversation about __________ tomorrow.”
• Set boundaries. “Please do not say __________ again to me or around me."" [Source]

Bias: "a strong inclination of the mind or a preconceived opinion about something or someone. A bias may be favorable or unfavorable: bias in favor of or against an idea." [Source]

Examples of Implicit/Unconscious Bias:

• Assuming that the woman coming into the hospital room is a nurse instead of a doctor
• A store associate following a young person in a store because they are concerned about shoplifting
• Assuming gender pronouns

Examples of Explicit/Conscious Bias:

• Overt negative behavior that can be expressed through physical harassment
• Hate Speech
• Purposely excluding individuals because of their race, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, disability, etc.

Microaggressions: "the everyday verbal, nonverbal, and environmental slights, snubs, or insults, whether intentional or unintentional, which communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages to target persons based solely upon their marginalized group membership. In many cases, these hidden messages may invalidate the group identity or experiential reality of target persons, demean them on a personal or group level, communicate they are lesser human beings, suggest they do not belong with the majority group, threaten and intimidate, or relegate them to inferior status and treatment." [Source]

Examples of Microaggressions [Source]:

Privilege: "1. Power and advantages benefiting a group derived from the historical oppression and exploitation of other groups. 2. Unearned access to resources only readily available to some people as a result of their group membership." [Source: Parvis, L. Understanding Cultural Diversity in Today's Complex World, 5th ed., Embrace Publications, 2013, p. 169]

White Privilege: "The concrete benefits of access to resources and social rewards and the power to shape the norms and values of society which whites receive, unconsciously or consciously, by virtue of their skin color in a racist society.

Examples include the ability to be unaware of race, the ability to live and work among people of the same racial group as their own, the security of not being pulled over by the police for being a suspicious person, the expectation that they speak for themselves and not their entire race, the ability to have a job hire or promotion attributed to their skills and background and not affirmative action." [Source: Adams, Maurianne Ed, Lee Anne Ed Bell, and Pat Ed Griffin. Teaching for Diversity and Social Justice. 2nd ed., Taylor & Francis, 2007.]

White Fragility: "a state in which even a minimum amount of racial stress becomes intolerable, triggering a range of defensive moves. These moves include the outward display of emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and behaviors such as argumentation, silence, and leaving the stress-inducing situation. These behaviors, in turn, function to reinstate white racial equilibrium." [Source]

Stereotype Threat: "a phenomenon that occurs when there is the opportunity or perceived opportunity for an individual to satisfy or confirm a negative stereotype of a group of which she is a member. The threat of possibly satisfying or confirming the stereotype can interfere with the subject’s performance in a variety of tasks, including but not limited to academic performance."[Source]

The term first appeared in an article written by Claude Steele and Joshua Aronson, "Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans."

"Strategies that have shown promise in mitigating the effects of stereotype threat:

• Training and encouraging educators to maintain high learning expectations for all students, regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status, or perceived ability.
• Fostering positive and supportive school and classroom cultures, which includes strong and trusting relationships among students and between teachers and students.
• Embracing and celebrating, rather than ignoring, student diversity in educational settings, and cultivating the perception that diversity is an educational asset that provides benefits to all students.
• Consistently repeating and reinforcing the message that stereotyped students can and are expected to do well in school and on tests.
• Communicating to students the belief that they are capable of achieving at high levels, even while giving critical feedback on their work. (A teacher might say, for example, “I wouldn’t give you this criticism if I didn’t believe, based on what you’ve written here, you could make this work even better.”)" [Source]