Parenting While Black: Racial Protectionism as Parental Involvement in Education

• In Event: 32.071 - Perspectives on the Role of Parent Involvement in Black Education

Abstract

Parenting while Black is a phrase often characterizing the uniqueness of the type of caregiving that considers the struggles Black children and their Black parents/caregivers face in a system of racism white supremacy (Bey, 2015; Boyd, 2003; Murphy, 2015; Solomon, 2015). Although there are many testaments underscoring this phenomenon, the empirical research focused on Black families and their involvement in K-12 education comprehensively fails to consider this complexity. Using the counter-narratives drawn from 22 sets of interviews among 16 sets of Black families varying across demographics we use Critical Race Theory (CRT) to explore parenting while Black in K-12 education. Specifically, the tenets “whiteness as property” (Harris, 1992), intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1988), and pervasiveness of racism (Bell, 1992) are used to highlight participants counter-narratives. What these parents demonstrate is a variation of actions that may lie within two frameworks—critical race parenting (Depouw & Matias, 2016) and racial protectionism (Mazama & Lundy, 2012). Considering our findings, we argue that centering Black parental voices may yield a more realistic understanding of involvement and engagement while Black in K-12 education.

Authors

• Jada A Phelps-Moultrie, Portland State Univeristy

• Jomo W. Mutegi, Indiana University - IUPUI