Reimagine

Hegemony masks itself as common sense, as “just the way” things are (Janks, 2010).

Imagine if we had a framework that was BOTH generative in the lived experiences of community members AND not dependent on reaching an institutional consensus. Something that did not frame “diversity-related” work as one more thing teachers were expected to do. Something that worked in concert with the reframed default narratives about ourselves, our classrooms, and our students. Something that discursively grounds our conversation about the importance of racial literacy and radical acceptance. Something we could explore, wander away from, and then come back to as we try to make sense of our world.

The Magical Forest

I find it helpful to conceptualize our community as a magical forest that exists outside the bounds of reality. Like any good magical forest, our forest is populated with curious forest creatures, each engaged in a unique and particular dance. Although the nuance of each dance is lost on the casual observer or novice, each of us has spent a significant portion of our lives mastering the intricacy of our chosen dance. While the bildungsromans (#shoutout #Englishfaculty) for some of us are set in magical forests just like this one, others have come here seeking refuge from a world they found/find hostile and violent. Whatever the reason, to me it often feels like we fancy ourselves both fugitives and guardians of a secret: If only more people read things like this, thought about things like this, acted more like this… we would be able to find clarity and peace.

As I explain to students, many of us -- that is, the forest creatures -- are so committed to what we understand as the liberatory power of our particular dance that we can reflexively dismiss dances we do not immediately recognize. Then I share my own dance: Recognize that your time in this forest is finite. Once the summer winds blow through the forest, it will be time to twirl away to meet another set of curious creatures -- each as fiercely dedicated to spreading their own ‘good news’ as the last. Wander through the forest. Be curious: what is it about our dance that enchants us? See if you can decipher what it is we love about the nuance of our chosen dance.

The role of the institution

I know Frank, a white faculty member who participated in this practitioner inquiry, is likely wondering: What is the “endgame” here? Is the goal for us to be colorblind? Does being racially literate mean we just know how to “tap dance” around things we “shouldn’t” be saying? Should we be color-aware and behave differently around students of Color? That doesn’t seem right. That doesn’t seem like something we should be striving for. That doesn’t make any sense.

Frank would not be alone.

Work w/ Dan