Removing Roosevelt: Unsettling Theodore Roosevelt’s Place in Settler Colonial Curricula

• In Event: Interdisciplinary Provocations: Knowledge Production and Counter-Discourses

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to continue Calderón's (2014) work in “uncovering settler grammars,” seeking to identify the ways that harmful myths and narratives “bleed” through the curriculum and impact teaching and learning. Utilizing a decolonial lens, the author examines how the New York City social studies curriculum and the American Museum of Natural History teach students about the symbolic role of Theodore Roosevelt in understanding US imperialism and settler coloniality. Curricular responses to settler grammars identified are proposed, envisioning how educators can respond to such manifestations of settler colonialism.

Author

• Andrew Flanagan, Teachers College, Columbia University