There's No Racism at My School, It's Just Joking Around’: Ramifications for Anti‐Racist Educ

According to: There's No Racism at My School, It's Just Joking Around: Ramifications for Anti‐Racist Education, Raby suggests analyzing the response patterns of teenage girls offers insight into education and adolescent perception of racism. Through these interviews three trends became apparent: a disassociation with racism, narrowly denying racism, and racism that is conceptualized around white privilege. Theories as to why this is the case and strategies for anti-racist education are offered.

The blatant racist examples that are discussed and defended as 'not being racist' are most notable when reading this article. What seems so clearly oppressive and offensive is shrugged off as teenage folly, something to outgrow. The stigma around racism is pushing people to deny its existence rather than acknowledge racial differences and move forward. It becomes imperative to properly educate students about racism. The term must be clearly defined and misunderstandings addressed.

In terrifying reflection, it is not surprising that students are so confused about racism and frightened to acknowledge it. They are constantly receiving mixed messages. Through the education system, where they have spent the majority of their time, they learn racism is oppressive, offensive and all around nasty. At the same time institutional racism is running rampant, demonstrating oppression of subordinate ideologies through promoting the dominant ideology. Institutional hypocrisy.

Questions:

Have suggested strategies for anti-racist education been implemented?

Would today's youth have similar difficulties defining and applying the term racism? Would they understand institutional racism?

How does geographic privilege affect one's views on racism?

Works Cited:

Raby, R. (2004). ‘There's no racism at my school, it's just joking around’: Ramifications for anti‐racist education. Race Ethnicity and Education, 7(4), 367-383.

Image. People. Retrieved February 28, 2016 from http://lipmag.com/culture/am-i-too-sensitive-or-are-you-too-racist/