"Exposed. Scared. Upset. Worried." Investigating White Women's Willingness to Navigate Privilege

• In Event: 75.042 - MTCC Roundtable Session 34
  In Roundtable Session: 75.042-8 - (Re)Positioning Privilege, Power, and Praxis in the Interrogation of Whiteness

Abstract

If whiteness cannot be seen, named, or defined, how can white people ever develop methods to work against it? In this study we sought to understand how a critical reflection journal assignment in a multicultural education course influenced white women’s willingness to explore race, racism, and privilege. Students in a Master’s level Student Affairs program were asked to complete weekly journal entries regarding their experience engaging in conversation of social justice, multiculturalism, and cultural immersion. Through analysis of eight white women’s journals using privilege identity theoretical framework, we identified themes of knowledge gap awareness, self-awareness, and vulnerability

Authors

• Rebecca L Morgan, Clemson University

• Robin Phelps-Ward, Clemson University