Running head: SOCIAL JUSTICE THROUGH CULTURAL COMPETENCE
Social Justice Through Cultural Competence:
Exploring Microaggressions in Textbooks and their Negative Effects on Students
Claudia García Medina
Seattle University
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SOCIAL JUSTICE THROUGH CULTURAL COMPETENCE
Abstract
Social justice is a powerful term that reminds us all to keep the needs of others in the
forefront of our minds. This paper embraces the concept of social justice in the classroom
and argues that professors should utilize cultural competence as a framework when
selecting classroom readings and textbooks. As classrooms become more diverse it is
imperative that textbooks that contain microaggressions in their texts be eliminated from
the classroom. By doing so, everyone in the classroom benefits, thus fostering graduating
students who are culturally competent and hold social justice as their conceptual
framework.
Keywords: microaggressions, critical race theory
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As a first generation student of color, my experience in higher education has been
both challenging and rewarding. The rewards by far outweigh the challenges; however,
entering the classroom and feeling like I have to prove that I am intelligent enough to be in
there is not only taxing but also very unjust. My feelings, concerns and experiences seem to
be synonymous to those of other underrepresented students. Often, we do not feel that we
are adequately included in the curriculum, required readings often leave us out of the
content, and more often than not, if we are mentioned it is to provide a negative statistic or
prognostic. College campuses are rapidly becoming more diverse. This diversification
dramatically changes the campus climate and provides important opportunities for mutual
learning, especially within the classroom. It is vital that professors are adequately prepared
to facilitate difficult conversations in the classroom and that they understand the degree of
damage microaggressions embedded in required readings cause.
For the purposes of this paper I will draw from my experience as a student in the
Student Development Administration program at Seattle University. I have identified
microaggressions embedded in the required textbooks that have triggered me. What
exactly is a microaggression? “Microaggressions are brief, everyday exchanges that send
denigrating messages to people of color because they belong to a racial minority group… in
the classroom, students may describe [them] as a pattern of being overlooked, underrepresented and devalued” (Sue & Constantine, 2007, p. 137). For those who do not belong
to target groups, it may be difficult to identify microaggressions in their daily lives. It is
even more difficult for them to identify microaggressions that are embedded in college
textbooks. I acknowledge the fact that it is difficult to find textbooks that are
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microaggression-free and also contain the content needed for the course. However, when
such microaggressions are identified, it is imperative that healthy dialogue is initiated by
the professor in order to address the transgressions.
The challenge arises when the professor does not know how to foster a learning
environment that supports, celebrates and validates the diverse cultural capital in the
classroom. “We are hobbled by the paradox of a largely White teaching staff whose
practices, consciously or not, contribute to the racial achievement gap yet who are unable
to see what they are doing” (Taylor, 2009, p. 9). As Taylor suggests, White teaching staff are
unable to see what they are doing, thus maintaining antiquated teaching practices in the
classroom and utilizing the same textbooks that continue to publish microaggressions. The
danger in utilizing textbooks that contain microaggressions is threefold; (1) it continues to
support negative/hurtful stereotypes, (2) it is triggering to the target group, and (3) an
opportunity to engage in important dialogue is lost. The majority of college professors are
White and often times they fail to realize the privilege that comes with their whiteness.
The problem is not that they have privilege but rather the lack of accepting their
privilege. In the classroom (and in general in academia) white, upper-middle class,
heterosexual males are the norm. In our, “radicalized society where whiteness is positioned
as normative, everyone is ranked and categorized in relation to these points of opposition”
(Ladson-Billings, 2009, p 19). Consequently, White students are awarded the privilege of
being normal, and everyone else is left at the margins. The important point here is that
professors hold power. They have the responsibility to foster a classroom environment that
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is conducive to the educational success of all their students, regardless of their numerous
identities.
In a chapter about the mental wellness of students on college campuses, the authors
introduced a very small section on ethnic diversity. They begin the section by
acknowledging the diversification of college campuses and then go on to state: “Mental
health professionals are faced with the challenges of assisting with the unique mental
health issues of these various student populations” (Dunkle & Presley, 2009, p. 274). After
making that statement, they go on to provide an example to support their point but utilize
international students as their sample population. Not only did the authors state that
students of color bring unique mental illnesses to college campuses, but they also
compared domestic students of color to international students. This was triggering to me in
numerous ways. What is more worrisome is that this was written in the primary textbook
for future student affairs administrators. Essentially what we are being taught is that
students of color have unique mental illnesses. Not only is it a microaggression, it also
supports dangerous stereotypes.
In another textbook, the author presented the topic of financial difficulties higher
education institutions are enduring. These financial difficulties are causing programs to be
cut and student funding to be decreased in additional to an increased presence of
conservative ideas on higher education, and funds allocation. He states, “A third element of
this resurgent conservatism, continuing at least into the second decade of the century, is
increasing concern over crime and moral laxity, coupled with a diminishing inclination to
view either poverty or racism as an acceptable excuse for ‘deviant’ (i.e., non-middle-class)
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behavior (Johnstone, 2011, p. 318). I was so triggered after reading this sentence that I had
to put the book down. Playing the race card is the last thing a person of color wants to be
told when we voice our concerns. How dare the author even suggest that poverty and
racism are synonymous to moral laxity? The message I extracted from this sentence was
that people of color are immoral, poor and utilize such identities as crutches to justify bad
behavior. That sentence was the end of the paragraph, leaving that as the final thought for
the student reader.
The same author states, “The future course of higher education’s quality,
accessibility, and efficacy, from the vantage point of the second decade of the century,
seems increasingly dependent on matters of finance” (Johnstone, 2011, p. 319). After being
triggered by the aforementioned microaggression, I read this sentence and again was
triggered. No, quality, accessibility and efficacy of higher education are not only about
financial matters; we cannot continue to ignore the experiences of underrepresented
students. Access continues to be about so much more than finances for underrepresented
students. Once again the author does not go on to explain his thought process behind this
statement and ends the paragraph with this sentence.
The aforementioned are only a few examples of countless microaggressions that I
have identified in our required classroom readings. In my own journey of trying to find my
fit within the educational system, I stumbled across Critical Race Theory (CRT) and I
automatically felt validated. “Critical race methodology in education…exposes deficitinformed research and methods that silence and distort the experiences of people of color
and instead focuses on their racialized, gendered, and classed experiences as sources of
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strength” (Solórzano & Yosso, 2009, p. 134). When I was reading academic work that
honored my experiences as a student of color I finally felt like I belonged in academia; I
found a sense of belonging. CRT offers underrepresented students the opportunity to share
their experiences with their peers in an academic manner, without necessarily disclosing
that this is their personal experience. It takes away the self-imposed responsibility of
having to teach our peers all they need to know about students of color. Often
underrepresented students take on the role of being the voices of their community because
of a large void in the literature.
If professors acknowledge the importance of addressing microaggressions and
fostering a safe learning environment, the microaggressions will not be as devastating to
the target groups. Holding conversations about diversity in the classroom can have the
adverse affect of polarizing “student affairs graduate students and faculty rather than to
clarify and increase mutual understanding about race relations” (Sue & Constantine, 2007,
p. 142). This may be a reason why professors are intimidated by such conversations.
However, the mutual growth, multicultural competence and personal development of all
students will be increased if such dialogue is facilitated with proficiency.
What can be done? “In dealing with racial stereotypes in our teacher education
classrooms, we need to hear about, discuss, and analyze those racial experiences that
People of Color and Whites encounter in their public and private worlds” (Solórzano, 1997,
p. 11). Beginning the conversation is always difficult and very scary. It is almost easier to
ignore the subject of microaggressions in textbooks because beginning the process of
addressing such daunting subject matter is alien to most professors. Nevertheless,
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“facilitating difficult dialogues in classroom settings may allow student affairs educators to
avoid disastrous consequences (e.g., anger, hostility, silence, complaints, etc.) and improve
inter-group relations” (Sue & Constantine, 2007, p. 139). The problem lies in the fact that
by ignoring such microaggressions, we all turn into supporters of that system of
oppression. When professors are courageous enough to create a classroom environment
that not only fosters healthy dialogue, but also validates the experiences of those who have
been traditionally oppressed and left out of textbooks, the professor becomes a change
agent for all his/her students. This is what social justice looks like in the classroom.
There is no doubt that student affairs professionals are being required to be
innovative on how they interact and support students. The diversification of college
campuses will continue to change student services for years to come. “Life was certainly
much easier for student affairs professionals and faculty teaching student development
when all we needed to learn and teach were the theories of Chickering, Perry, and
Kohlberg” (Evans, Forney, Guido, Patton, & Renn, 2010, p. 20). However, not all students
are being represented in these linear models. Students are more complex, vociferous and
demanding than ever before. “Linear models are rigid and static, no longer reflecting the
rhythms of daily postmodern life” (Evans, et. al., 2010, p. 372). College should be a place
where student learning should be fostered. Stereotypes should be challenged and identities
strengthened. This cannot happen unless we begin to engage in dialogue inside the
classroom. Professors ultimately dictate the type of learning experience their students will
have. A careful selection of textbooks and facilitating difficult dialogue is a great way to
SOCIAL JUSTICE THROUGH CULTURAL COMPETENCE
leverage the formation of all students. “We owe our students nothing less” (Evans, et. al.,
2010, p. 372).
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References
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