“There’s Nothing Really There”: Meaning-Making Around the Salience of Race and Identity Among White Adolescents

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Thursday 4:15pm
  In Poster Session: Critical Examination of Race, Ethnicity, Class, and Gender Poster Session

Abstract

In the context of white supremacy, futuring for education requires an examination of the antecedents of racial consciousness in White students, especially during pivotal periods of growth and learning. We examined the ways that nine White adolescents perceived the impact of race-ethnicity in their schools and their meaning-making around white identity, in one suburban-metro middle school. Transcripts of individual interviews were analyzed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Analyses generated three experiential themes that illustrated students’ meaning-making around race in their school: the insignificance of white identity, the benefits of racial-ethnic diversity for White students, and perceptions of racially equal treatment. The potential for White students to stand in solidarity with others in the promotion of racial-ethnic justice will be discussed.

Authors

• Tina M. Durand, Boston University

• Mitali Temurnikar, Boston University

• Pei Wang, Boston University